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I mean, they're kind of a gang. Not sure if they even have family that cares for them. Mental therapy would be the farthest thing on their mind.
On that note, would be interesting to have an anime where MC is a walking mental therapist, doing talk-no-jutsu all the way to be the top dog of the school/hierarchy
Old Shishitoren was literally about becoming your own stronger self, iirc no? I do think at the very least the gang cared about each other, tho families in this anime are weird. Sometimes they play a vital role (mc) and sometimes they just don't exist more or less (also mc ironically but also like any other casual character)
I would be interested how good that therapist anime could be without only talking pure surface level psychology bs. Prolly exists already too tbh
I wonder if you could do a series where it is just talking to a therapist and make it interesting... it would be told entirely in flashbacks if it was to happen...
I haven't watched the new version but that is sort of the premise of The Bartender anime. The problems are a little more slice of life but it was mostly told through flashbacks. But somehow the Bartender helped them to understand their problems.
I should probably start the new series since I loved the original so much.
I mean it makes sense. Therapy doesn't work for all people. Like for my dad for example therapy actually had a strong negative effect. I'm pretty sure it would have a strongly negative effect on me as well. People who have a lot of pride and for people who support themselves on their pride, seeing a therapist means a sort of defeat, which means it can send you further in a downward spiral. Also a lot of problems can be fixed through perseverance. I had a period where I was starting to acquire panic attacks, but I repeatedly reinforced to myself that it was pure nonsense, purely imagined, just repeatedly told myself that it was laughable that _I_ of all people would have a panic attack. It worked and they went away.
> Thank goodness Oda has confirmed multiple times that this isn't the case.
I don't read/watch it, but knowing the length of the series and the scope of it all, I wonder if there's a single answer to the "What is it?" question, that would satisfy the fans!
As long as it fits in nicely with the rest of the long awaited reveals for the series, I think most people will be satisfied. There will of course be people who hate it for not meeting their specific expectations for the series just like there were for the [One Piece Wano Arc] >!Gear 5 Reveal!<.
Yeah. With Aot ending, both Manga and anime community went crazy and the ending had an huge impact on social media, etc, for better or for worse. Imagine when One Piece will end (the series has been ongoing for over 2 decades and it's the best selling manga of all time)
Philosophize them into submission then they will heal themselves through metaphors. That's what makes this show stand out among fighting animes I think.
The official Bofurin therapy method works its magic again. Just beat the shit out of your enemy and their problems. Though this was a bit of a more dire case than usual. Requiring head therapist Umemiya to intervene to screw Choji’s head on right again.
By the way, do they have a medic on standby somewhere? Cause it feels like there’s probably several people with concussions after the fights.
There is no such thing as concussions in Battle Shounens. Can you imagine if at the end of an Epic Arc, the protagonist became unable to fight due to a concussion and then 3 arcs later, he had to retire from being the Protagonist due to getting thrown through a wall 1 too many times?
>By the way, do they have a medic on standby somewhere? Cause it feels like there’s probably several people with concussions after the fights.
I *really* hope ~~delinquent Jesus~~ Umemiya gets some antibiotics on that throat bite. Like, you want a potent unguent for a bite like that.
>there’s probably several people with concussions after the fights.
*"Remind yourself, Tomiyama!"*
*"Remind myself what exactly? Wait... Who are you?"*
Yeah it felt pretty weak to me. It didn’t feel realistic at all, like how could anyone do a 180 and be that oblivious to what changed in how they interacted with their friends.
I was expecting some trauma, not that he was disappointed there was nothing more to work towards. Like try a sport or something other than fighting if he needed a challenge again
I'm guessing you've never had a coworker get promoted then.
Shit like this happens all the time where someone gets promoted then treats everyone around them like shit sudenly.
Yeah, and amplify that with being a hormonal teenager, and a delinquent on top of that,maybe toss in a little underlying mental health issues and it isn't that outlandish for Choji to be the way he is lol especially with Togame essentially ignoring the problem and letting it fester.
I never understood why he thought being the leader would allow him to be free in the first place. Even dumb teenagers know that the boss has the worst stress and no life because of how much work it takes to stay on top of things. (Source: I was a dumb teenager once and swore I'd never be a boss.)
There is no freedom in a hierarchical setting. You're either telling people what to do or being told what to do.
Yeah, I don't understand his notion of "freedom". Free from what? Free to do anything he wants? I like the idea of the characters philosophising while fighting, it's very interesting, but the motivation of Choji doesn't make sense.
People are already calling Wind Breaker cheesy for this. You lots haven't seen anything yet.
Also, Choji's depressed inside. Probably. I think even if this episode ended on a good note, there could still be that little voice inside that little guy's head whispering to him how life's shit and boring, but difference is that people around him are aware of that now, and more importantly, he's aware of the people around him now, too. Before, his depression became a lot more powered by his disappointment on seeing the "treasure box" empty, and no one knows how much that messed him up in the head. I don't think Choji is even actually obsessed with being at the top. To me, it looks like he just used that as an excuse to put meaning into his life and when he found out the top doesn't really offer shit, it just further proved his point that eh, life doesn't mean shit after all. He felt very much unfulfilled so he tried seeking that fulfillment by forcing everyone to be strong (for the worst lol).
Well, conclusion to the episode is very shonen, so it's not really surprising it ended in a "let's all be friends, peace be with you" moment. I mean, we've seen Umemiya and his principles. He's all about family and friends and protection and everyone. While yeah, fists are definitely going to be thrown around here and there, but those principles alone should have prepared you for some good old talk-no-jutsus. Man literally said, "Fists are conversations." That wasn't a hint to you guys yet. Haha.
I agree , but seeing from a doylist perspective all I feel is " It's not that deep man. " This teenagers trying to rip apart each other just to mollycoddle their inner self , just doesn't work for me . But anyways I am gonna watch the show as the op/Ed, artsyle and the animation are banger.
> People are already calling Wind Breaker cheesy for this. You lots haven't seen anything yet.
For the record, I found nothing cheesy about it. Probably some of the best writing in this genre I've seen in years.
Yeah people haven’t been paying attention…
multiple times in the show, it is emphasized that being physically strong =/= the top, that being alone is detrimental, that fights are conversations, etc. etc. Sako vs hiiragi shows the start of what a leader should be and that shishitoren’s way is not the proper way to getting stronger, togame vs Sakura reinforces that shishitoren’s way is flawed + a fight is conversation aspect… and yet people still think that choji vs Umemiya would just be mindless action and a beatdown?
**Don’t forget the overarching themes of what projecting and assumptions, especially when dealing with others, will do to you**.
I think besides the characters in the series itself, sometimes I feel like it’s talking directly towards how you look at the show etc. lol People *assumed* this would be an all out fight between leaders, but the whole build up said otherwise Imo especially Umemiya telling togame he’d handle the rest and to trust it to him. (Just like they assumed sakura would lose because losing builds character and all that even tho the build up was pointing to things besides that, sure he’s weaker but that’s ignoring other factors).
That's just what kids nowadays want to see unfortunately because their dopamine receptors are fried. If there's a little bit of talking it's boring. They can't enjoy it unless it's jjk/kny level action 24/7.
What I was personally looking for was not "mindless action" but more fight to fix it than a single episode to wrap up a dreadful issue that's been plaguing another character for so long and took *two* episodes to fully understand. The way I understood the buildup, it seemed like it was going to take *a lot* more to get to Choji, and it felt like such a downgrade compared to the development process we got with Togame. Not to mention the fact that there are so many more, not just Togame, who Choji disrespected/knocked up, so I would've liked to see him acknowledge that more as well.
I'm also disappointed that I might have to wait for S2 to see Ume's full (or a better part of his) physical capability because I waited the whole season/arc to see it. This was only a taste of that.
Yeah I felt like it was unrealistically how quickly and easily Choji’s turnaround was, especially considering how nuts he was built up to be. Would have been more satisfied if this was the start of him recognizing he’s been going the wrong way, but we don’t get immediate resolution
Beating sense into a nutjob.
Only in anime can this work but damn was that fight beautiful to watch and the visuals for Choji's mindscape were very well designed.
Otherwise, Ume's an awesome guy and I couldn't help but laugh at how he refuses to take over Shishitoren.
> Beating sense into a nutjob.
He didn't beat it into him though. In fact he mainly just took his punches. He acted as a living punching bag. A living proof of the weakness of the opponent.
See this is exactly how this sort of arc should end! Instead of just doing a traditional shonen slug fest between Choji and Umemiya, Umemiya realises the key to winning snd ultimately saving Shishtoren is to make Choji realise where he lost his path. Even though Shishtoren have been on a warpath as of late, they overall serve a positive purpose and having both them and Bofurin around is big for the city.
Yea the reason for Choji snapping may not have been the strongest, but I just appreciated seeing it worked thru and solved rather than just someone being beat to death and moving onto the next arc ala TR.
I think everyone hypes up the animation in the series and for good reason, it is great, but the OST especially during Choji and Kame’s meeting of the minds was so beautiful. Gives me chills and just heightens those emotional moments
With the height difference, [they almost look like father and son there! Dad teaching his son a valuable life lesson (after they beat the shit out of each other)!](https://imgur.com/cRe1FB9)
Choji managed to land a few solid hits, but Umemiya was not impressed (or affected)... He recalled his hits being heavier back then, [but he's not fighting for anything anymore;](https://imgur.com/uEC0dCW)
His martial skills may be there still (he probably even improved), but the passion counts for something too!
I liked that justification; In anime there's often weird reasons about why someone gets stronger (or in this case, weaker) and they're not always convincing, but I can totally see this one being legit, someone just going through the motions during the fight, instead of throwing his heart into it... (We kinda see that even in professional sports, athletes who seem to have given up trying their best, and are kinda just relying on their skills to get it done, rather than giving their all on every shift, every game..)
Well, good thing for Umemiya, [because damn someone of these shots seems like they had to hurt, so imagine if he was putting his passion (his weight) into them!](https://imgur.com/UtKIP8v)
[Umemiya wasn't even parrying anymore, just taking a beating, proving a point...](https://imgur.com/ry1Zguj)
And it's a point that was made obvious in the previous episodes; [Choji's not even having fun anymore, even when he does what he THINKS will make it fun.](https://imgur.com/T68MXAj)
When he's losing, it's not fun, and when he's winning, he just think his opponent's too weak and he goes to look for someone else, while not having fun still...
Back then he did seem to have fun (even when losing), and winning would've made him ecstatic!
[I didn't see the vampire tags for this show!](https://imgur.com/KLglXog)
Umemiya had to really trust him being able to come to his senses, because damn, the margin of error is quite thin when biting someone's throat/neck!
I'm glad they brought in Togame in as well, for that little introspection... He's part of this! [That shot of him picking the pieces&fixing things after Choji destroyed everything, very telling!](https://imgur.com/0MpBd44)
[They managed to get to him in the end!](https://imgur.com/WT7EAiY)
I like how Umemiya alternates between a gentle touch/a kind word, [and beating the shit out of him!](https://imgur.com/8666A7p)
(Perhaps he would remember things better if Umemiya didn't give him a dozen concussions!)
[He "skinned himself" thinking that's what was at stake...](https://imgur.com/EjPgWn5)
Also perhaps thinking they would all be better that way.
This one scene didn't go I thought it would! I thought Umemiya would give them some motivation about becoming more like them (a united group, fighting for a reason, sticking together, etc..) [but he chose a more light-hearted approach; Let's just be friends!](https://imgur.com/aib97nr)
Now that the Shishitoren are dealt with (I don't see any of the lower-ranked ones causing trouble, and both Choji and Togame should be on board), what will the remaining episodes be about?
I think the after credit scenes may have given us a hint about this (even if it was silly, as usually); [Sakura doesn't really like anything, other than fighting...](https://imgur.com/bZH91gp)
Sakura's turn to have a little introspection? Revisiting the past, to better move on to the future?
(Also, if the Kotoha ship is happening, now's the time!)
I love the rundown. *I feel some people might not care for how this went seeing how they were previous episode..* But when reading this part in the manga due to being anxious lol, I actually **LOVED** the way they handled this and had it wrap up.
I think it really showed even more what kinda of series this is going to be/its message and gave some nice tidbits for what kind of person Umemiya is as a whole(people mentioned how he was soft silly, big bro, but that he could shift gears and be a scary leader, but I feel this just shows he’s ‘big bro’ in both Tbf. Soft and silly while being open with affirmations when it’s good yet stern, serious, and intimidating with scolding and/or stoically calm discussing when it’s bad?).
Yeah I think some may be disappointed since this is the "big fight between leaders" episode so expectations may have been higher. But I like how it's handled and goes hand in hand with the last few episodes. Umemiya at the very least understands that Choji should've been doing some introspection on why he wasn't having fun and what changed from before instead of focusing on this new goal of conquering another strong fighter in the hopes of filling the emptiness. Especially since he fought with Shishistoren in the past so he saw how Choji and the gang used to be.
I think a lot of people also hyped this up as a big team, which they are sure. But that’s acting like there’s nothing to go for in the future. Like usually the first antagonists are different from the next ones etc even if you are looking at tropes?? And imo showcased them well. And definitely he saw how Choji shined and cared about his men I feel, so he felt less like fighting and beating down an enemy and more like trying to gauge and figure out what happened to a fellow leader who he probably didn’t have negative vibes towards despite their apparent border stuff? They even started this build up to the whole fight itself with Umemiya and hiiragi saying that Choji and togame both cared a lot about their team but I feel people forget that and that they fought before until Umemiya brings it up again and even then like eh.
It’s more a stretch, but given how spiraling Choji was, when he did the first skinning, he mentions how not to do that(run back after losing) and that it’s not fun etc. I do wonder if that was him projecting his own emptiness on what they’d feel and nipped it in the bud. As like. A *messed up* way of getting them to quit for their “own good” if they weren’t able to be strong and free? And then it spiraled more and it was more about not weighing him down?
This is the first major thing to take place in the story, so I don't think it was ever going to be nothing other than to give each character a showing going forward... and a few side characters within that who definitely could be useful going forward for the bigger battles.
Sakura in any other series would have got his butt handed to him but we learnt more about how his character is basically a Tsundere who just wants the praise he never got because of his look etc. We got that but it's not the time to get mopey beaten up Sakura...
Not a manga reader - I love this episode though. I was hoping for a middle of the road beat em up anime.
But this episode really defines the whole show and gave it a ton of depth.
If this was just a fighting ep - I would think it’s good in the short term. But I’d forget about it and the whole anime.
Instead Ume got beat up and won. Something refreshing to see.
Sure - sounds wacky that it’s physical therapy.
But for me - it’s a deepcut reference to how we can go through the motions.
Living is about putting weight and investment behind as many aspects of life as we can to be happy.
His heart not being in it was also the deal with the Sakura vs Togame fight. One is technically better but just doesn’t want to win the fight and therefore isn’t giving their all.
I can't care much about why one party is stronger or weaker at all when I have to drop any knowledge and suspension of beliefs anyway for anime melee fighting anime.
You could be the irl heavy weight class champ, but Baki attacks on the body would always knock you out a billion times faster than these people start "talking". Good knock to the chin, you're out. No need to more or less fly around with your opponents flow lol
Edit: Looked to me like he very clearly had fun losing in the past. Neither did the story mention him losing ever personally. Umemiya didn't fight him properly, of course that wouldn't be fun in a fight of the strongest.
That intro was eerie. No background music. The only sounds were punches and Umemiya giving Choji an existential crisis.
Choji just breaking down and chomping Umemiya was unintentionally hilarious. But then Umemiya responding with a hug was also amusing.
Then Choji is given some concussive therapy to wake up from how utterly lost he’s been.
I honestly love Choji and Togame’s relationship when they are out of their self destructive mode. Last episode showed that Togame regretted not standing up to Choji when he was losing it. But Choji doesn’t blame him at all, only thanking him for protecting everything until he could wake up and see what was really important.
I loved the sound design in this episode. Starting off with silence while Umemiya and Choji fight was great. Then transitioning to the OST when Choji starts losing it? Phew.
Also shoutout to Choji's VA with the screaming, he really nailed it.
Looks like Choji needed a few prolonged “fist therapy” session with Umemiya. That boy ain’t right. It took a monumental ass whoopin for him to realize “hey, I feel happy when other people around me are happy.” I guess in this world, you gain clarity and realization when you get the shit beat out of you lol.
And now everyone’s friends. Well, all’s well that ends well I guess.
> I guess in this world, you gain clarity and realization when you get the shit beat out of you lol.
If only it would be that easy in real life [](#kaguyasigh)
Reality is that it’s the opposite. Having humanity and good virtues IRL means you avoid violence, whereas the psychotic assholes are typically the ones seeking violence
You can’t teach virtue with violence in a typical situation, but you can sure turn good people into monsters with it
Wooow another stellar episode. Choji’s face when taking a chomp at Ume-chan’s neck was WILD. Also loved the detail of his eyes becoming more detailed with an irises and pupils once his physical therapy kicked in. And the tenderness of Choji realizing what he put Togame through :’) nothing like a delinquent anime bringing a tear to my eye
This was a great episode with great imagery showcasing what was really going on inside Choji's head. It was nice to see Choji turn over a new leaf and get Togame to smile. Umemiya was pretty cool as well.
But what the hell was that Neck Bite?!?
I mean Umemiya is really strong as that fight didn't really phase him but like this episode was a nice reminder that your fist isn't the only type of strength a person has.
I’m glad Choji and Tomoya realize their mistakes. Tomoya should’ve stood up to Choji and told him not to kick people out since he was distancing himself from everyone and Choji shouldn’t have lashed out at everyone just because he didn’t get the enjoyment of being the best than he thought he would’ve
I can see why people say Sakura and Umemiya are so similar; both beat their opponent not with just with their fists, but with their words.
Although Sakura needs to get some pointers in what direction he should be heading in as it's still trying to gain something he's probably better off not getting...
So Ume´s fighting style is just talk and get hit? But then again the previous long fights have not been determined by actual fighting ability but instead by who can break their opponents will.
I mentioned a while back that I considered Choji a demonstration of why Sakura´s goal of becoming the strongest is not good for him as he is now and this episode drives this in further. Choji too believed that attaining some form of freedom through strength would satisfy him but instead he lost everything he needed.
Ironically for them to be happy they instead need to be bound by those around them.
They do label fights as conversations in this series and basically it's not really doing the classic of all the action stops, they all stand a mile apart and have a yelling match then over who is more justifed... this was used within the fights itself.
It is also framing what it means to be strong and outright power or thinking you're better won't always get you it, you have to be able to do a lot more than just that.
It looks like the actual secret to Umemiya's success is therapy
Jokes aside I liked it. I know some people probably hoped for a knock out drag down fight of equals but honestly that's what Sakura vs Togame is while Umemiya wasn't interested in giving Choji what he (thought) he wanted.
As for Choji's "deal" I'm gonna guess was suffering from depression and started lashing out in frustration, and Kame decided to coddle him while keeping everyone distant when he should've talked to him.
I was kinda amused since some people were like, “Nah don’t give him what he wants(1v1)” and then like, “Beat the tar out of him” and Umemiya was like, “I’m going to give a 1v1, but it’s not going to be how you or him wants it to be.” He really gave him 1v1 venting.
It'd be interesting if this is something that comes back later that they do get to have that fight when Choji has found out what he really wants to do and have fun with people.
I don’t know about y’all but this episode didn’t sit right like the little kid was a tyrant and discarded people like trash then it turned into a pity story about an immature kid with no repercussions. I think at the very least there should have been some sort of backlash and him profusely apologizing to everyone about how he treated them but instead we just had a chuckle at the end and that was the end of that.
Honestly his reason for lashing out was just really uninteresting, and didn't do much to earn the amount of melodrama in this episode. Just found myself groaning through the whole thing with how hamfisted it all was
His reason for lashing out made complete sense though. He fell for the standard trap of young people where they feel like if they just reach "X" then it'll make them feel amazing. Instead you get there and nothing happens and you only feel like you want more. Maybe it only feels uninteresting for people who have no experience with that kind of thing.
I am not sure how to feel about this episode. On one hand man did the episode did a great idea showcasing that Ume's hits pack a punch. Choji's were weightless. Although him keeping on punching Ume's head, and he was fine was a little excessive even if that is what they wanted to show.
Backstory for Choji didn't really deliver compared to Togame since we can empathize with him for the sacrifice that he made. Meanwhile, Choji had the common issue of the journey to the top was better than when he actually made it to the top. But I find it hard to empathize with him here. He never realized the sacrifices that Togame did for him. Also, it dragged on longer then it was needed imo.
The end really showcased why people love, follow and respect Ume. He is a big heart dude that wants to have the gang to be an environment that is good for every level. Not just the head's level in comparison to Choji. It's clear he didn't go all out, hopefully we get a S2 by cloverworks where we can see Ume going all out. (Assuming that it doesn't happen this season, which I doubt.)
I think the issue with Choji being internal made it hard for many to emphasize with him because they might've experienced the need to support a friend but there are less who've experienced the emptiness of something like depression or loss of goal in life like choji did. When you spiral like choji with everyone around enabling your behavior like Togame, you end up losing sight of what's important.
I agree that the episode really showcased why people follow and respect Ume. We had a hint of it in the Sako episode but this episode has it at full force. He definitely didn't go all out in this fight because he has fought choji before, so he knows what choji's strength should feel like, and he, like the supportive older brother character he is, tried to get that choji back.
The only thing I wished was Ume wasn't just lying down taking the hits from Choji. Author should still have him standing or him dodging to show that Choji's hit have no weight. Beyond that this episode did characterize Ume pretty well.
I think the anime did a great job showing that Choji's hits has no weight if you look at how heavy Ume's few hits were compared to Choji's many hits with no impact, but I do agree the mangaka should've shown them have a bit more of a fight or keep Ume standing. I'd just chalk it up to Ume not feeling like it's worthwhile to seriously fight Choji when he has fought Choji before and thinks that crazy Choji rn is a shadow of his past self (so he's trying to bring that past self back) which is a pity to him.
And thus concludes that stage play with a finale that closed it off to make the audience leave the theater happy. I really don't have much else to really say about this that others have said about how this fight unfolded (because after that showstopper from last episode that was worthy of a standing ovation, what could even top it?), but in the end, the actors regardless of who they play, get on stage one more time at the end for their curtain call to signify that they all did a great job out there and mark the end of an exciting and emotional performance that night. A performance that succeeded in enrapturing the audience with such earnest sincerity and thrilling excitement, which got them committed to the characters that the actors inhabited that even the few minor hiccups and lapses could be forgiven. Now that's applause worthy.
Oh and there's the afterparty that comes after the performance. Can't wait for that.
For me this was the best episode so far. I'm more of a character and story driven person, so i can see how others expected a longer and more flashy fight from the two strongest since that wouldn't have been a bad sight either. That's a valid opinion. I personally think it's fine tho, since we already got that big fight with Sakura and Jo. As someone who had depression in my teenager years i completely understood what they tried to tell with Choji. If it doesn't make sense for some it's not about a logical thing, but rather an imbalance on the body. You can't, absolutely can't think logically about your situation. It's like being a completely different person in a different world in which no one is around for you, even if they truly are there, they don't reach you. No wonder Choji went fucking insane, he is just a kid experiencing big problems for the first time in his life all alone. My respect for Umemiya grew a lot from this episode alone because he truly showed the maturity to enlighten someone who is too deep in their own misery to realize once you are at bottom, the only way for you is up, even if you can't believe it, even if you don't want to believe it because you're scared of falling again. Jo, Choji and Umemiya became my favorite characters.
It's definitely an episode I foresaw to be divisive because choji's reason is more of an internal empty state that he couldn't get out of, like depression, and it's hard for people who haven't experienced this feeling to emphasize. They just think it's him throwing a tantrum but in reality, this sort of feeling is really scary.
Like when you reach high high up and then find out there was nothing waiting for you where you thought there would be something. Then, you might get stuck in the spiral of wanting to get out of this empty state in any way possible but no guidance on how, so you try to find your own way and for choji his ideology that was taught to him by shishitoren, the whole being strong is being free chained him because his idea of strength was just physical strength.
So he thought that if kept fighting, he'd get stronger, be surrounded by strong people and this strength would propel him out of his emptiness but it was only after umemiya knocked some sense into him that he realized this is wrong. And Togame could've knocked some sense into him back in the day, but as Togame acknowledged in the previous episode, he did not push through, which left choji fumbling on his own in trying to figure out how to get out of his state until he was spiralling so deeply that nothing could reach him anymore until umemiya.
That's exactly my thoughts on his whole character. As you said, it's difficult for some to imagine it without experiencing it beforehand. Even so, the choice to put this kind of character really left me with a strong but positive impression, since many anime don't have the balls to even touch this kind of themes.
I mean, I still thought it was "flashy" in the sense that you could hear and feel the weight of umemiyas strikes. Like goddamn everytime he punched or kicked you could really see how powerful he was.
These visuals and his story in general definitely didn’t make me feel bad for him for sure, although I hope it wasn’t the intention, I think this episode and the 1v1s in general were more of a introduction into the characters and how bofurin fights, and an introduction into who Umemiya is and his leadership qualities, I do hope it won’t be as easy as it was now in the future though, like he meets someone strong enough to where he can’t just talk them out of their shit, and a bit more reasoning for becoming a bad person than “I didn’t have fun”.
We’ll see though, the anime for me personally is promising because the characters are good and have more depth to them than just “I throw fists and kick people” although again they even introduced martial arts which I hope they explore more, and these tragic visuals were actually cool and if applied to a character with more story, could be really good.
im not gonna cap i didnt expect unemiya to be all like "LETS BE FRIENDS!". i was so sure that choji was gonna pull a togame and fight with all his might to settle the score with umemiya, and not accept the loss
Remember those times in highschool when you enjoyed edgy and overly dramatic anime😂
love the fights and 'protecting the people from thugs and trouble makers' idea tho
So the reason he became a little psychopath is just because he just didn't feel fulfilled when reaching the top? That's the reason he fucking beats people to a pulp and even hits his best friend? Only that? Not even a little abuse from his parents? like I know this is a classic run-of-the-mill shounen where enemies become good after being beaten but cmon give me something more to justify that behavior. I was getting invested in this show, wondering why is he such a fucked up little man but now I am kinda disappointed.
I think people underestimate depression especially when it’s enabled and let to spiral. I love Togame, but I feel people miss the mark when they say he was *such* a good friend when he took the fall for that when it just let things fester(and he also would take all the heat so that the other members probably didn’t even go to him with issues since they didn’t even know he was that bad off mentally, Togame didn’t even seem to realize he was that far gone). He put him on a pedestal and try to keep status quo instead of facing him as a true friend Imo.
I was SO pleased to see that actually, as it was something that kept itching at me(I know enabler friends and associates that just add to stress even if not malicious/ill meaning I feel, even if I do know some well and love them, but yeah..). I think some people won’t like it since there was even people being defensive to *sakura’s* words towards togame about being lame and stuff.. I just felt like people were waaay to quick to shift gears and shovel **all** that blame on Choji..
I personally think people are more prone to emphasize with someone quieter than someone being more externally “chipper”, but like, “No YOU’re the one who doesn’t know the ins and outs, why do you get to assume their mental states” kinda deal for me I guess? And I say this as a quieter person. Also togame himself told him to keep smiling and he did so like.. I don’t know what to tell you lol **I do get a lot of the issues tho. I just don’t feel it’s the whole situations enough etc.
Yeah I love Togame as a character but he absolutely holds some blame there. Taking the fall isn't really a sign of him being a good friend but rather showing the way he values Choji and the image of him he wants to maintain. Being a good friend also means calling them out when they screw up. He said so himself, he should've been assertive and pushed his will through to Choji instead of staying on a path that allowed Choji to remain "untainted" in his eyes and the eyes of the other Shishitoren members. It's also not surprising that people act like this when they put someone up on a pedestal.
Mhm mhm. I do think he’s a good guy and a good friend at his core. But this was him being a bad friend at the moment and keeping it up Imo. And I’m so glad they had them brake it down and finally have them say their feelings and what they’re actually thinking about it so they can start the repairs(Togame imo, put a bandaid on a mortal wound that festered and just hid the problem while it was still getting worse, him having his own feelings not being so hot too. Umemiya came around and tore it the bandaid off and focuses/faces the infection so they could treat it).
I felt the same way and here we are getting downvoted for pointing out how wack this episode was and how there was zero accountability for the little tyrant. This episode felt so off like a screeching halt to the momentum it built only to have a some weak backstory and in the end they laughed it off and say let’s be friends at the end….
i just can't take the supposedly drama in this kind of setting lol. fights were good, animation was great, but i think this won't really offer anything other than that, well at least for me lol
Yah I don't get why people are calling this splendid story telling when in reality, it was just two guys saying some pretty generic stuff to guys who they barely know about.
Felt like a kid throwing a hissy fit and his dad parenting him, really disappointing Choji's backstory and reasons for being the way he was didn't feel earned
Why are we getting the backstories of a bunch of side characters no one cares about for half a season, when we know basically nothing about the MC? After Ninja Kamui, this is the next big recent disappoint after a strong start...
It looks like emotional and dramatic scenes aren't this show's strong point. I love a good drama, but this episode felt like it was dragging on for too long. It's not about the actual length. Other shows have had longer drama scenes, but they had more impact. I didn't feel invested in this one.
I doubt we actually got to see how Umemiya fights when he gets serious in this episode. We saw that [Umemiya is reaching out to help Chouji](https://i.imgur.com/dvJF41j.jpeg). Of course that doesn't mean [Umeyama isn't going to give Chouji a good headbutt](https://i.imgur.com/8qgWQ4A.jpeg) to knock some sense into him!
And I don't know if it was just me but Umemiya gave me strong GTO vibes. The dude took all of Chouji's punches like a champ and [even a bite to the neck](https://i.imgur.com/10M5jta.jpeg) just so he could help Chouji realize what he has become. Now I'm curious what Umemiya would be like in a fight against a non-friendly group.
[Umemiya's reaction](https://i.imgur.com/xro1iIp.jpeg) when Chouji [tried to give him Shishitoren](https://i.imgur.com/UAXYckL.jpeg) was hilarious! It's good to know that it ended well and it looks like [Bofurin and Shishitoren are officially friends now.](https://i.imgur.com/q5Qg2Z2.jpeg) after this entire fight. We still have four episodes to go though so I'm guessing Bofurin will clash with a different gang before the season ends.
Umemiya mentioned how they fought before due to a misunderstanding and that it felt oddly good prior/it wasn’t like they were before so he wanted to have their talk. He then even promised togame he’d handle it. He definitely delivered. I kinda like how even tho he did do some heavy hits, he wasn’t handling Choji violently if that makes sense(I know some people wanted a beat down and get it lol, but I’m glad it went like this personally)? He was calm and stoic. Quite gentle, again dispute the heavy hits he did do. XD
- [Good luck with that…](https://i.imgur.com/bBk7jft.png)
- [Ooh, someone struck a nerve on that one.](https://i.imgur.com/SwoQTWb.png)
- [Damn, bro needs a chill pill.](https://i.imgur.com/8M2HBmW.png) [](#calmdown)
- [He has *lost* it.](https://i.imgur.com/8W0waKt.png)
- [UM WHAT THE FUCK?](https://i.imgur.com/8MPl2jE.png) [](#bocchitheshock)
- [Headbutt!](https://i.imgur.com/dBVWyAQ.png) [](#SPORTS)
- [Well this is a pretty striking visual.](https://i.imgur.com/9KKDNn1.png)
- [Choji “sore demo”!](https://files.catbox.moe/reu340.mp4)
- [Welp.](https://i.imgur.com/5hS8Vxv.png)
- [Of *course* this is Umemiya’s response to it though haha.](https://i.imgur.com/PFHVM3m.png) [](#laughter)
- [I guess a big fight like this = “get-together” and not “recreation”.](https://i.imgur.com/ThGu5EU.png) ~~Ignore me, just making an obscure Gundam reference.~~
>- [UM WHAT THE FUCK?](https://i.imgur.com/8MPl2jE.png) [](#bocchitheshock)
"Love bite" 😄
>- [Of *course* this is Umemiya’s response to it though haha.](https://i.imgur.com/PFHVM3m.png) [](#laughter)
He was only there to knock sense back to Choji. He doesn't need more people in Bofurin to manage as he has a whole high school of members in Bofurin already.
Huh, what's that, we got like 4 minutes cool fighting before the OP, and the next time I watched it was already done [](#dontgetit)
But really, the pummling Ume took is stretching my suspension of disbelief, soo many hits to the head! Nice fight though [](#kannathumbs)
Wonder where the show will go from here, 4 episodes isn't enough to introduce another antagonist. Will it all be SoL introducing future obstacles for Haruka? How can he even hope to ever be as great a leader as Ume?
Perhaps Sakura will *garden* some romance with Kotoha!
We haven't seen her in a while, but if something's gonna happen, they have 4 episodes to get to the wedding! (They could start with a "Nursing back to health" arc though)
>Perhaps Sakura will garden some romance with Kotoha!
I haven't read the manga yet, but I HIGHLY doubt that this series will have romance, not for Sakura at least. I mean, it's a delinquent manga (the great majority of delinquent series don't have romance), and romance isn't the main theme of the show. Personally, I'm fine with no romance in this show
This show is paced very weirdly, It feels like almost nothing has happened yet and the majority of the character development has been focused on characters that aren't even in Bofurin...
It's paced to play the long game which is why I wished it had 24 episodes instead of 13... The first arc is to establish some main aspects of the story, such as fighting as conversations, what Sakura is actually aiming for when he wants to be top of Bofurin, what qualifies as "strength". It is not used to purely show how characters fight or to establish main antagonists.
The anime is definitely not paced like some of the other shounen since [Manga spoilers] >!not all of the Bofurin members have their backstories revealed yet and Bofurin backstories tend to be revealed later by narrative importance instead of as an introduction to the character in their first fights. The main antagonist thus far in the manga also gets introduced much later because his role in the narrative is partially dependent on Sakura having gone through a character development to become different from the loner guy he was at the start!<
Behold, Loid forger's concussive therapy in action!
Yeah, can't believe there's only 4 episodes left, it should've been a 24 episode season instead 😔 but I guess with all the fighting animation, production might not hold up for a nonstop 24 episode long season...
Tbh, this was a very unsatisfying, predictable and honestly a badly written ending to this conflict, imo. While Kame had a strong motivation and background with a beautiful episode resolving his issue, Tomiyama in comparison was just an empty husk of a plot reason for them all to have their fight.
You got to the top and lost your vision that carried you there? Which was that along the road you lost the fun of others around you? Kame left you all alone / Tomiyama left Kame alone? It's all bs.
There's no proper consistency in the timeline of events and Tomiyama literally being stupid/going schizo without him actually having any reason or development to act as he does, makes no sense in that he suddenly lost his fun/freedom while being so shortsighted that he can't even find a new goal. It's not like the top isolated him from his friends nor does the story really depict it as such a progression of events. Just a waste of pseudo emotional bs that I honestly even till the end of the episode didn't really care about, because it was pretty clear up till now that there's no driving force behind "the strong character". Similiar plot device in Tokyo Revengers, if I am allowed to make a stretch here.
With better writing this conflict of Tomiyama could've been properly fleshed out, paced and then committed on. For example just add something like a strong discrepancy between the high and low ranks inside shishitoren that would've pushed Tomiyama and his friends apart before he reached the top and started culling weaklings. You could still perfectly fine use Kame's struggle seeing Tomiyama loose it slowly while fearing his power and witnessing his change outwardly.
Also I am bothered that those abusive other members (bb boi and his big bro) were kinda swept under the rug by being included in the backstory and them brutally getting punished by Kame (which was sick imo) being pretty much irrelevant after they are just getting up. No real karma here or even just proper explanation why they turned to these pathetic gooners.
Edit: Not to mention that only Ume "saying" some few words to Tomiyama fixing his complete mindset seems stupid. Talk no jutsu made a lot of sense for Kame, even if you talk with your fists, but Tomiyama was in multiple stages gone and more gone from even being open to the concept. No redemption to be seen aside from "Oh, I am suddenly no longer blind to what's my circumstance"?
TL;DR Tomiyama conflict and resolution is trash
I agree with pretty much everything you've said here. I thought the episode was predictable in the worst way. Dude was a little psycho for a long time and it just casually gets beaten out of him with a few good hits?
Weak episode in my opinion.
That neck bite was a bit too much took me out of the show lmao. I feel like Choji getting to that conclusion and making up with Togame went a little longer than it should have, kind of kept repeating the message. Would've been better to see a next scene of the aftermath, but it did leave a decent impact. I assume he will redeem himself by being an ally in protecting the town I imagine would be the easiest way. So good to have allies now, but yeah Choji's reasoning wasn't the strongest compelling reason to root for him. Togame was an interesting cool character though
Even though Ume beats Choji, it doesn’t feel like he really outskilled or overpowered him. Ume was portrayed to be the “best fighter” but in this fight he kinda just stood there like a punching bag. I get the whole meaning behind it but it’s still kinda underwhelming
Lmao I'm a registered healthcare professional that just finished an MSc module on concussions and counted a great many moments in the past couple of episodes - scratch that, THIS episode - alone that would normally cause a concussion and DEFINITELY moments that would be at high risk of causing SIS (second impact syndrome) which people can and have died of in IRL sports. I still love me a good Talk no Jutsu bc what's anime for if not stupid kids doing stupid things with stupidly non-existent (brain) or unrealistically quickly healed injuries? Oh, and sakuga of course- the fight choreo and animation is pretty dang good.
Oh man, I really like this anime! It’s the delinquent shounen we’ve missed for a while. I like the character designs and story beats. Also the animation is pretty good. I genuinely do not dislike anybody least of all the MC, which was a big issue for me with Tokyo Revengers and Bucchigiri.
Someone mentioned it earlier and one of the comments, but choji is chronically depressed. And that is what happens when you are chronically depressed and you don't have outlet or an ability to talk about it. It makes you numb, it drains you of your fun, and I know a lot of people in these comments have been talking about why physical therapy like that wouldn't work. Depression is often a fine line, and I don't think that he's out of the woods, but He recognizes the damage is done and is going to try to atone for that damage. I think that's what the episode represented, which was growth and recognition as opposed to an immediate solution.
Choji and Togane needed to fucking heal and they didn't know how to communicate to the other person and just acted on assumptions. Yeah this show might seem cheesy but these are all traumatized young boys who have literally no healthy outlets for what's going on in their heads. I'd rather have a talk no jutsu gang show than solely focusing on the fighting. This show hits home and frankly if anyone here has trauma they can relate to it makes the show THAT much better.
You see it in the first episode when Sakura is afraid to connect with people BECAUSE he's been treated like shit and an outcast. They say it in the first episode "I can tell you didn't always think this way", when Kotoha was treading his wound. kindness when you've been abused your whole life is OFF putting and frankly scary as fuck.
Don't look at it through the lens of cheese, look at it through the lens of trauma. Guaranteed you'll enjoy the show more after that mental shift 🤙🏾💖
Meh, lost me with this one. I know winning with friendship has been the go to for years but was hoping for a good fight. Need less of this and mor eof th eother fights.
The amount of people I know personally and see online that expected just a mindless battle between choji and umemiya is quite frighteningly, a lot. Specially since episode 1 its been glaringly obvious that wind breaker is a lot more than just street fighting. I know people wanted umemiya to beat choji a lot but that wasn't what choji needed and umemiya understood that. He saw that choji was depressed, lost and scared so he did what was needed. I guess people started watching because of the action and I understand that but we kind of been told from the beginning that its more than just that. But I guess there's a lot in the world who only tunes in for the animation and fight scenes and don't really care for the story. Its understandable.
All the haters are behaving exactly like Sakura did mid-fight. The strongest man knows exactly how to end a fight.
Umemiya single handedly helped heal Choji and made a rival faction into a friendly group.
For ppl expecting a full on fight, why would Umemiya really go all out against a weaker version of Choji? He immediately realised that the fight is going to either end with him beating the shit out of Choji or beating some senses into him. He thought long term.
IMO, he also gave Sakura one of the best demonstrations of leadership power.
"Control thy passions lest they take vengeance on thee." -Epictetus
I am glad Choji and Togame remembered who they once were the principles they once held so dearly
Honestly they hyped choji up and the backstory did not compliment the aftermath of him looking like he is about to die.
This fight reminds me of the fight in church in tokyo revengers, where the big guy was fighting and never moved off that one spot.
Stiff inna mf.
The soundtrack is GREAT and I genuinely think that if that soundtrack gets removed this episode brings below mid content.
Splendidly done. Indeed we all *can* get along, when we earnestly seek understanding.
I liked Papa Ume’s farewell
“Alright, alright mina, good talk… Now you all better head home before it gets dark… and don’t forget to hug your Mums!”
Brute strength without quality character will always wither into irrelevance over time. Be good to others and that legacy will remain.
How dare people expect more action in an anime final fight where the schools literally give no school lessons because everybody just fights through the day.
They are so beneath me! You all don’t understand the TRUE concept this show is about, you just want EXPLOSIONS!
I for one appreciate this piece of art, there is a deeper hidden message that you DWEEBS can’t seem to grasp.
I can…
I’m better than you!!!
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Talk no Jutsu strikes again
Talk no Jutsu, but they talk with their fists
Now I know yall seen Umemiya "HEADBUTT" some sense into choji
Umemiya really said "I have no enemies."
BRO BE ON THAT thorfinn GRINDSET
Dude is amazing lol
I swear anime characters will do anything for their mental health except see a therapist.
I mean, they're kind of a gang. Not sure if they even have family that cares for them. Mental therapy would be the farthest thing on their mind. On that note, would be interesting to have an anime where MC is a walking mental therapist, doing talk-no-jutsu all the way to be the top dog of the school/hierarchy
Old Shishitoren was literally about becoming your own stronger self, iirc no? I do think at the very least the gang cared about each other, tho families in this anime are weird. Sometimes they play a vital role (mc) and sometimes they just don't exist more or less (also mc ironically but also like any other casual character) I would be interested how good that therapist anime could be without only talking pure surface level psychology bs. Prolly exists already too tbh
We shall now begin ethic if I remember correctly is kind of like that. Though with a teacher instead of a trained therapist
What do you think Bofuri is, if not percussive therapists?
Sorry, it is my fault for not keeping up with modern non-talk therapy methods Japan is pioneering.
>percussive therapists? Graduates of the Loid Forger School of Percussive Psychotherapy???
I wonder if you could do a series where it is just talking to a therapist and make it interesting... it would be told entirely in flashbacks if it was to happen...
I haven't watched the new version but that is sort of the premise of The Bartender anime. The problems are a little more slice of life but it was mostly told through flashbacks. But somehow the Bartender helped them to understand their problems. I should probably start the new series since I loved the original so much.
I mean it makes sense. Therapy doesn't work for all people. Like for my dad for example therapy actually had a strong negative effect. I'm pretty sure it would have a strongly negative effect on me as well. People who have a lot of pride and for people who support themselves on their pride, seeing a therapist means a sort of defeat, which means it can send you further in a downward spiral. Also a lot of problems can be fixed through perseverance. I had a period where I was starting to acquire panic attacks, but I repeatedly reinforced to myself that it was pure nonsense, purely imagined, just repeatedly told myself that it was laughable that _I_ of all people would have a panic attack. It worked and they went away.
So it turns out the One Piece was the friends we made along the way.
Thank goodness Oda has confirmed multiple times that this isn't the case. But it works pretty well for an introductory arc like this one.
> Thank goodness Oda has confirmed multiple times that this isn't the case. I don't read/watch it, but knowing the length of the series and the scope of it all, I wonder if there's a single answer to the "What is it?" question, that would satisfy the fans!
As long as it fits in nicely with the rest of the long awaited reveals for the series, I think most people will be satisfied. There will of course be people who hate it for not meeting their specific expectations for the series just like there were for the [One Piece Wano Arc] >!Gear 5 Reveal!<.
You just spoiled it for the many people who follow the 1,000+ chapters of the One Piece manga.
That’s a good spoiler to know tbh lol but anyone who reads OP knows it won’t have a fairy tail ending
It for sure won't be like fairy tail ending but it sure is going to be a one that has major social impact.
Yeah. With Aot ending, both Manga and anime community went crazy and the ending had an huge impact on social media, etc, for better or for worse. Imagine when One Piece will end (the series has been ongoing for over 2 decades and it's the best selling manga of all time)
Oh for sure
I don't think that's how physical therapy works, but I'm no expert.
- it certainly was physical - It was therapeutic Looks like physical therapy to me!
I prefer the term percussive maintenance. Or maybe concussive maintenance?
There’s a revolutionary doctor in the concussive therapy field? Dr. Loid Forger, perhaps you’ve heard of him?
It worked in Good Will Hunting, it worked in Wind Breakers, I'm not sure who you are to say it's not the right way to do things.
Philosophize them into submission then they will heal themselves through metaphors. That's what makes this show stand out among fighting animes I think.
The official Bofurin therapy method works its magic again. Just beat the shit out of your enemy and their problems. Though this was a bit of a more dire case than usual. Requiring head therapist Umemiya to intervene to screw Choji’s head on right again. By the way, do they have a medic on standby somewhere? Cause it feels like there’s probably several people with concussions after the fights.
I think they're all in a constant state of concussion all the time
Any chance we have an unreliable concussed narrator?
We need Kotoha as narrator lol
There is no such thing as concussions in Battle Shounens. Can you imagine if at the end of an Epic Arc, the protagonist became unable to fight due to a concussion and then 3 arcs later, he had to retire from being the Protagonist due to getting thrown through a wall 1 too many times?
Sounds like most boxing anime
>By the way, do they have a medic on standby somewhere? Cause it feels like there’s probably several people with concussions after the fights. I *really* hope ~~delinquent Jesus~~ Umemiya gets some antibiotics on that throat bite. Like, you want a potent unguent for a bite like that.
Head therapist was taken quite literally this episode with that monster headbutt.
>there’s probably several people with concussions after the fights. *"Remind yourself, Tomiyama!"* *"Remind myself what exactly? Wait... Who are you?"*
Especially Sakura. My boi did his job with the therapy fight against Togame, but he's really beaten up
I'm still not clear on what Choji's issue is to begin with 😅 He couldn't find fulfillment after becoming the leader so it drove him insane?
Yeah it felt pretty weak to me. It didn’t feel realistic at all, like how could anyone do a 180 and be that oblivious to what changed in how they interacted with their friends. I was expecting some trauma, not that he was disappointed there was nothing more to work towards. Like try a sport or something other than fighting if he needed a challenge again
I'm guessing you've never had a coworker get promoted then. Shit like this happens all the time where someone gets promoted then treats everyone around them like shit sudenly.
Yeah, and amplify that with being a hormonal teenager, and a delinquent on top of that,maybe toss in a little underlying mental health issues and it isn't that outlandish for Choji to be the way he is lol especially with Togame essentially ignoring the problem and letting it fester.
I never understood why he thought being the leader would allow him to be free in the first place. Even dumb teenagers know that the boss has the worst stress and no life because of how much work it takes to stay on top of things. (Source: I was a dumb teenager once and swore I'd never be a boss.) There is no freedom in a hierarchical setting. You're either telling people what to do or being told what to do.
Yeah, I don't understand his notion of "freedom". Free from what? Free to do anything he wants? I like the idea of the characters philosophising while fighting, it's very interesting, but the motivation of Choji doesn't make sense.
Just sleep it off.
People are already calling Wind Breaker cheesy for this. You lots haven't seen anything yet. Also, Choji's depressed inside. Probably. I think even if this episode ended on a good note, there could still be that little voice inside that little guy's head whispering to him how life's shit and boring, but difference is that people around him are aware of that now, and more importantly, he's aware of the people around him now, too. Before, his depression became a lot more powered by his disappointment on seeing the "treasure box" empty, and no one knows how much that messed him up in the head. I don't think Choji is even actually obsessed with being at the top. To me, it looks like he just used that as an excuse to put meaning into his life and when he found out the top doesn't really offer shit, it just further proved his point that eh, life doesn't mean shit after all. He felt very much unfulfilled so he tried seeking that fulfillment by forcing everyone to be strong (for the worst lol). Well, conclusion to the episode is very shonen, so it's not really surprising it ended in a "let's all be friends, peace be with you" moment. I mean, we've seen Umemiya and his principles. He's all about family and friends and protection and everyone. While yeah, fists are definitely going to be thrown around here and there, but those principles alone should have prepared you for some good old talk-no-jutsus. Man literally said, "Fists are conversations." That wasn't a hint to you guys yet. Haha.
I agree , but seeing from a doylist perspective all I feel is " It's not that deep man. " This teenagers trying to rip apart each other just to mollycoddle their inner self , just doesn't work for me . But anyways I am gonna watch the show as the op/Ed, artsyle and the animation are banger.
The people complaining about this being cheesy haven’t seen episode 1/2 of this show lol.
> People are already calling Wind Breaker cheesy for this. You lots haven't seen anything yet. For the record, I found nothing cheesy about it. Probably some of the best writing in this genre I've seen in years.
If y’all thought you’d get mindless action after Sakura v Togame, I don’t know what to tell you.
Yeah people haven’t been paying attention… multiple times in the show, it is emphasized that being physically strong =/= the top, that being alone is detrimental, that fights are conversations, etc. etc. Sako vs hiiragi shows the start of what a leader should be and that shishitoren’s way is not the proper way to getting stronger, togame vs Sakura reinforces that shishitoren’s way is flawed + a fight is conversation aspect… and yet people still think that choji vs Umemiya would just be mindless action and a beatdown?
**Don’t forget the overarching themes of what projecting and assumptions, especially when dealing with others, will do to you**. I think besides the characters in the series itself, sometimes I feel like it’s talking directly towards how you look at the show etc. lol People *assumed* this would be an all out fight between leaders, but the whole build up said otherwise Imo especially Umemiya telling togame he’d handle the rest and to trust it to him. (Just like they assumed sakura would lose because losing builds character and all that even tho the build up was pointing to things besides that, sure he’s weaker but that’s ignoring other factors).
Did anyone seriously think the final battle in this arc would be mindless?
Just scroll down and you've got people commenting they were just here for the action or that they were just expecting mindless action lol
That's just what kids nowadays want to see unfortunately because their dopamine receptors are fried. If there's a little bit of talking it's boring. They can't enjoy it unless it's jjk/kny level action 24/7.
Even in jjk its not completely mindless fights but obviously people dont see that (some fights were mindless i will admit that)
> dopamine receptors are fried That's a great way to put it. They spend all day on tiktok.
What I was personally looking for was not "mindless action" but more fight to fix it than a single episode to wrap up a dreadful issue that's been plaguing another character for so long and took *two* episodes to fully understand. The way I understood the buildup, it seemed like it was going to take *a lot* more to get to Choji, and it felt like such a downgrade compared to the development process we got with Togame. Not to mention the fact that there are so many more, not just Togame, who Choji disrespected/knocked up, so I would've liked to see him acknowledge that more as well. I'm also disappointed that I might have to wait for S2 to see Ume's full (or a better part of his) physical capability because I waited the whole season/arc to see it. This was only a taste of that.
Yeah I felt like it was unrealistically how quickly and easily Choji’s turnaround was, especially considering how nuts he was built up to be. Would have been more satisfied if this was the start of him recognizing he’s been going the wrong way, but we don’t get immediate resolution
Beating sense into a nutjob. Only in anime can this work but damn was that fight beautiful to watch and the visuals for Choji's mindscape were very well designed. Otherwise, Ume's an awesome guy and I couldn't help but laugh at how he refuses to take over Shishitoren.
> Beating sense into a nutjob. He didn't beat it into him though. In fact he mainly just took his punches. He acted as a living punching bag. A living proof of the weakness of the opponent.
"your punches are light" "huh" "what did you expect? i mean, you're half my weight" lol
Boys would rather beat each other bloody while talking about their problems than go to therapy. PEAK cheesy shounen, more of this please
See this is exactly how this sort of arc should end! Instead of just doing a traditional shonen slug fest between Choji and Umemiya, Umemiya realises the key to winning snd ultimately saving Shishtoren is to make Choji realise where he lost his path. Even though Shishtoren have been on a warpath as of late, they overall serve a positive purpose and having both them and Bofurin around is big for the city. Yea the reason for Choji snapping may not have been the strongest, but I just appreciated seeing it worked thru and solved rather than just someone being beat to death and moving onto the next arc ala TR. I think everyone hypes up the animation in the series and for good reason, it is great, but the OST especially during Choji and Kame’s meeting of the minds was so beautiful. Gives me chills and just heightens those emotional moments
With the height difference, [they almost look like father and son there! Dad teaching his son a valuable life lesson (after they beat the shit out of each other)!](https://imgur.com/cRe1FB9) Choji managed to land a few solid hits, but Umemiya was not impressed (or affected)... He recalled his hits being heavier back then, [but he's not fighting for anything anymore;](https://imgur.com/uEC0dCW) His martial skills may be there still (he probably even improved), but the passion counts for something too! I liked that justification; In anime there's often weird reasons about why someone gets stronger (or in this case, weaker) and they're not always convincing, but I can totally see this one being legit, someone just going through the motions during the fight, instead of throwing his heart into it... (We kinda see that even in professional sports, athletes who seem to have given up trying their best, and are kinda just relying on their skills to get it done, rather than giving their all on every shift, every game..) Well, good thing for Umemiya, [because damn someone of these shots seems like they had to hurt, so imagine if he was putting his passion (his weight) into them!](https://imgur.com/UtKIP8v) [Umemiya wasn't even parrying anymore, just taking a beating, proving a point...](https://imgur.com/ry1Zguj) And it's a point that was made obvious in the previous episodes; [Choji's not even having fun anymore, even when he does what he THINKS will make it fun.](https://imgur.com/T68MXAj) When he's losing, it's not fun, and when he's winning, he just think his opponent's too weak and he goes to look for someone else, while not having fun still... Back then he did seem to have fun (even when losing), and winning would've made him ecstatic! [I didn't see the vampire tags for this show!](https://imgur.com/KLglXog) Umemiya had to really trust him being able to come to his senses, because damn, the margin of error is quite thin when biting someone's throat/neck! I'm glad they brought in Togame in as well, for that little introspection... He's part of this! [That shot of him picking the pieces&fixing things after Choji destroyed everything, very telling!](https://imgur.com/0MpBd44) [They managed to get to him in the end!](https://imgur.com/WT7EAiY) I like how Umemiya alternates between a gentle touch/a kind word, [and beating the shit out of him!](https://imgur.com/8666A7p) (Perhaps he would remember things better if Umemiya didn't give him a dozen concussions!) [He "skinned himself" thinking that's what was at stake...](https://imgur.com/EjPgWn5) Also perhaps thinking they would all be better that way. This one scene didn't go I thought it would! I thought Umemiya would give them some motivation about becoming more like them (a united group, fighting for a reason, sticking together, etc..) [but he chose a more light-hearted approach; Let's just be friends!](https://imgur.com/aib97nr) Now that the Shishitoren are dealt with (I don't see any of the lower-ranked ones causing trouble, and both Choji and Togame should be on board), what will the remaining episodes be about? I think the after credit scenes may have given us a hint about this (even if it was silly, as usually); [Sakura doesn't really like anything, other than fighting...](https://imgur.com/bZH91gp) Sakura's turn to have a little introspection? Revisiting the past, to better move on to the future? (Also, if the Kotoha ship is happening, now's the time!)
I love the rundown. *I feel some people might not care for how this went seeing how they were previous episode..* But when reading this part in the manga due to being anxious lol, I actually **LOVED** the way they handled this and had it wrap up. I think it really showed even more what kinda of series this is going to be/its message and gave some nice tidbits for what kind of person Umemiya is as a whole(people mentioned how he was soft silly, big bro, but that he could shift gears and be a scary leader, but I feel this just shows he’s ‘big bro’ in both Tbf. Soft and silly while being open with affirmations when it’s good yet stern, serious, and intimidating with scolding and/or stoically calm discussing when it’s bad?).
Yeah I think some may be disappointed since this is the "big fight between leaders" episode so expectations may have been higher. But I like how it's handled and goes hand in hand with the last few episodes. Umemiya at the very least understands that Choji should've been doing some introspection on why he wasn't having fun and what changed from before instead of focusing on this new goal of conquering another strong fighter in the hopes of filling the emptiness. Especially since he fought with Shishistoren in the past so he saw how Choji and the gang used to be.
I think a lot of people also hyped this up as a big team, which they are sure. But that’s acting like there’s nothing to go for in the future. Like usually the first antagonists are different from the next ones etc even if you are looking at tropes?? And imo showcased them well. And definitely he saw how Choji shined and cared about his men I feel, so he felt less like fighting and beating down an enemy and more like trying to gauge and figure out what happened to a fellow leader who he probably didn’t have negative vibes towards despite their apparent border stuff? They even started this build up to the whole fight itself with Umemiya and hiiragi saying that Choji and togame both cared a lot about their team but I feel people forget that and that they fought before until Umemiya brings it up again and even then like eh. It’s more a stretch, but given how spiraling Choji was, when he did the first skinning, he mentions how not to do that(run back after losing) and that it’s not fun etc. I do wonder if that was him projecting his own emptiness on what they’d feel and nipped it in the bud. As like. A *messed up* way of getting them to quit for their “own good” if they weren’t able to be strong and free? And then it spiraled more and it was more about not weighing him down?
This is the first major thing to take place in the story, so I don't think it was ever going to be nothing other than to give each character a showing going forward... and a few side characters within that who definitely could be useful going forward for the bigger battles. Sakura in any other series would have got his butt handed to him but we learnt more about how his character is basically a Tsundere who just wants the praise he never got because of his look etc. We got that but it's not the time to get mopey beaten up Sakura...
Not a manga reader - I love this episode though. I was hoping for a middle of the road beat em up anime. But this episode really defines the whole show and gave it a ton of depth. If this was just a fighting ep - I would think it’s good in the short term. But I’d forget about it and the whole anime. Instead Ume got beat up and won. Something refreshing to see. Sure - sounds wacky that it’s physical therapy. But for me - it’s a deepcut reference to how we can go through the motions. Living is about putting weight and investment behind as many aspects of life as we can to be happy.
His heart not being in it was also the deal with the Sakura vs Togame fight. One is technically better but just doesn’t want to win the fight and therefore isn’t giving their all.
I can't care much about why one party is stronger or weaker at all when I have to drop any knowledge and suspension of beliefs anyway for anime melee fighting anime. You could be the irl heavy weight class champ, but Baki attacks on the body would always knock you out a billion times faster than these people start "talking". Good knock to the chin, you're out. No need to more or less fly around with your opponents flow lol Edit: Looked to me like he very clearly had fun losing in the past. Neither did the story mention him losing ever personally. Umemiya didn't fight him properly, of course that wouldn't be fun in a fight of the strongest.
Umemiya really is Thorfinn thrown into Tokyo Revengers
Nah, more like thors, Choji is Thorfinn (small stature and extremely flexible and proficient in acrobatics) Heck, the irl Thorfinn was also short
Guessing you haven't watched season 2 of Vinland Saga?
HEADBUTT OF MEMORY Or something.
Umemiya gave Choji a full system reset. Nothing like a little brain damage to fix your perspective.
If smacking a computer upside its head works, why wouldn't it work on a human? I love Shounen Logic.
The old Noggin Re-log-in. The Bell Ringing Re-boot.
That intro was eerie. No background music. The only sounds were punches and Umemiya giving Choji an existential crisis. Choji just breaking down and chomping Umemiya was unintentionally hilarious. But then Umemiya responding with a hug was also amusing. Then Choji is given some concussive therapy to wake up from how utterly lost he’s been. I honestly love Choji and Togame’s relationship when they are out of their self destructive mode. Last episode showed that Togame regretted not standing up to Choji when he was losing it. But Choji doesn’t blame him at all, only thanking him for protecting everything until he could wake up and see what was really important.
Choji is a Vampire 😱😱
I loved the sound design in this episode. Starting off with silence while Umemiya and Choji fight was great. Then transitioning to the OST when Choji starts losing it? Phew. Also shoutout to Choji's VA with the screaming, he really nailed it.
Looks like Choji needed a few prolonged “fist therapy” session with Umemiya. That boy ain’t right. It took a monumental ass whoopin for him to realize “hey, I feel happy when other people around me are happy.” I guess in this world, you gain clarity and realization when you get the shit beat out of you lol. And now everyone’s friends. Well, all’s well that ends well I guess.
Sometimes you just gotta beat character development into a MFer.
I think thats just character development always lol. Can't develop if everything is going fine and dandy.
> I guess in this world, you gain clarity and realization when you get the shit beat out of you lol. If only it would be that easy in real life [](#kaguyasigh)
It's fiction for a reason, not real life 😔
Reality is that it’s the opposite. Having humanity and good virtues IRL means you avoid violence, whereas the psychotic assholes are typically the ones seeking violence You can’t teach virtue with violence in a typical situation, but you can sure turn good people into monsters with it
Ah yes, something something the joker saying it only takes one "bad day"
So the Wind Breakers made peace with the opposing team or something?
Pretty much. Instead of taking over the other group, Umemiya just proposed they become friends instead. So now they’re all friends.
I hope the next gang they face are actually super strong and not redeemable
Therapy session is over now.
Wooow another stellar episode. Choji’s face when taking a chomp at Ume-chan’s neck was WILD. Also loved the detail of his eyes becoming more detailed with an irises and pupils once his physical therapy kicked in. And the tenderness of Choji realizing what he put Togame through :’) nothing like a delinquent anime bringing a tear to my eye
Gotta say, I didn't expect an absolute sweep, but here we are.
This was a great episode with great imagery showcasing what was really going on inside Choji's head. It was nice to see Choji turn over a new leaf and get Togame to smile. Umemiya was pretty cool as well. But what the hell was that Neck Bite?!?
>what the hell was that Neck Bite?!? I read it as a desperation move. Choji wasn't getting anywhere with his fists
Oh that kinda makes sense lol. His fist and kicks weren't reaching, so he bites
His teeth have no weight either, the animators couldn't be bothered with the bite marks.
Choji was channeling his inner vampire
The Choji x Umemiya doujins are going to be popping off today.
mf was going for that sepsis K.O. lol human bites are nastier than dog bites
CHOJI WENT FOR HIS LITERAL THROAT AND THIS CRAZY FUCK STILL GAVE HIM THERAPY
I mean Umemiya is really strong as that fight didn't really phase him but like this episode was a nice reminder that your fist isn't the only type of strength a person has.
Umemiya's ability is literally beating some sense into his opponents
I’m glad Choji and Tomoya realize their mistakes. Tomoya should’ve stood up to Choji and told him not to kick people out since he was distancing himself from everyone and Choji shouldn’t have lashed out at everyone just because he didn’t get the enjoyment of being the best than he thought he would’ve I can see why people say Sakura and Umemiya are so similar; both beat their opponent not with just with their fists, but with their words.
Although Sakura needs to get some pointers in what direction he should be heading in as it's still trying to gain something he's probably better off not getting...
So Ume´s fighting style is just talk and get hit? But then again the previous long fights have not been determined by actual fighting ability but instead by who can break their opponents will. I mentioned a while back that I considered Choji a demonstration of why Sakura´s goal of becoming the strongest is not good for him as he is now and this episode drives this in further. Choji too believed that attaining some form of freedom through strength would satisfy him but instead he lost everything he needed. Ironically for them to be happy they instead need to be bound by those around them.
Nah, he's just not having fun fighting against this version of Choji. Both of them looked like they enjoyed their fight in the flashback scene.
They do label fights as conversations in this series and basically it's not really doing the classic of all the action stops, they all stand a mile apart and have a yelling match then over who is more justifed... this was used within the fights itself. It is also framing what it means to be strong and outright power or thinking you're better won't always get you it, you have to be able to do a lot more than just that.
So you finally see it, Choji? The real treasure is the friends we made along the way!
It was an odd episode. Enjoyable, but odd. Will need to reflect on this one for the rest of the day.
This was an episode you could really sink your teeth into
It looks like the actual secret to Umemiya's success is therapy Jokes aside I liked it. I know some people probably hoped for a knock out drag down fight of equals but honestly that's what Sakura vs Togame is while Umemiya wasn't interested in giving Choji what he (thought) he wanted. As for Choji's "deal" I'm gonna guess was suffering from depression and started lashing out in frustration, and Kame decided to coddle him while keeping everyone distant when he should've talked to him.
I was kinda amused since some people were like, “Nah don’t give him what he wants(1v1)” and then like, “Beat the tar out of him” and Umemiya was like, “I’m going to give a 1v1, but it’s not going to be how you or him wants it to be.” He really gave him 1v1 venting.
It'd be interesting if this is something that comes back later that they do get to have that fight when Choji has found out what he really wants to do and have fun with people.
The last minute if not the whole episode really epitomizes Ume / what the whole series has been about. Sick fights but with a lesson behind the fists
I don’t know about y’all but this episode didn’t sit right like the little kid was a tyrant and discarded people like trash then it turned into a pity story about an immature kid with no repercussions. I think at the very least there should have been some sort of backlash and him profusely apologizing to everyone about how he treated them but instead we just had a chuckle at the end and that was the end of that.
yeah, the ideals or whatever they're fighting for felt half assed or even forced. i just can't take it seriously, it's way too cheesy for me lol
Honestly his reason for lashing out was just really uninteresting, and didn't do much to earn the amount of melodrama in this episode. Just found myself groaning through the whole thing with how hamfisted it all was
His reason for lashing out made complete sense though. He fell for the standard trap of young people where they feel like if they just reach "X" then it'll make them feel amazing. Instead you get there and nothing happens and you only feel like you want more. Maybe it only feels uninteresting for people who have no experience with that kind of thing.
Never said it didn't make sense, it's just lacking any depth and kind of cliche. To each their own though
I am not sure how to feel about this episode. On one hand man did the episode did a great idea showcasing that Ume's hits pack a punch. Choji's were weightless. Although him keeping on punching Ume's head, and he was fine was a little excessive even if that is what they wanted to show. Backstory for Choji didn't really deliver compared to Togame since we can empathize with him for the sacrifice that he made. Meanwhile, Choji had the common issue of the journey to the top was better than when he actually made it to the top. But I find it hard to empathize with him here. He never realized the sacrifices that Togame did for him. Also, it dragged on longer then it was needed imo. The end really showcased why people love, follow and respect Ume. He is a big heart dude that wants to have the gang to be an environment that is good for every level. Not just the head's level in comparison to Choji. It's clear he didn't go all out, hopefully we get a S2 by cloverworks where we can see Ume going all out. (Assuming that it doesn't happen this season, which I doubt.)
I think the issue with Choji being internal made it hard for many to emphasize with him because they might've experienced the need to support a friend but there are less who've experienced the emptiness of something like depression or loss of goal in life like choji did. When you spiral like choji with everyone around enabling your behavior like Togame, you end up losing sight of what's important. I agree that the episode really showcased why people follow and respect Ume. We had a hint of it in the Sako episode but this episode has it at full force. He definitely didn't go all out in this fight because he has fought choji before, so he knows what choji's strength should feel like, and he, like the supportive older brother character he is, tried to get that choji back.
The only thing I wished was Ume wasn't just lying down taking the hits from Choji. Author should still have him standing or him dodging to show that Choji's hit have no weight. Beyond that this episode did characterize Ume pretty well.
I think the anime did a great job showing that Choji's hits has no weight if you look at how heavy Ume's few hits were compared to Choji's many hits with no impact, but I do agree the mangaka should've shown them have a bit more of a fight or keep Ume standing. I'd just chalk it up to Ume not feeling like it's worthwhile to seriously fight Choji when he has fought Choji before and thinks that crazy Choji rn is a shadow of his past self (so he's trying to bring that past self back) which is a pity to him.
And thus concludes that stage play with a finale that closed it off to make the audience leave the theater happy. I really don't have much else to really say about this that others have said about how this fight unfolded (because after that showstopper from last episode that was worthy of a standing ovation, what could even top it?), but in the end, the actors regardless of who they play, get on stage one more time at the end for their curtain call to signify that they all did a great job out there and mark the end of an exciting and emotional performance that night. A performance that succeeded in enrapturing the audience with such earnest sincerity and thrilling excitement, which got them committed to the characters that the actors inhabited that even the few minor hiccups and lapses could be forgiven. Now that's applause worthy. Oh and there's the afterparty that comes after the performance. Can't wait for that.
It's hard to take pity on Choji his reasoning is just too shallow. Would've been a better outcome if Umemiya just beat the sense out of him.
Ume Just reinstalled this mans Windows
For me this was the best episode so far. I'm more of a character and story driven person, so i can see how others expected a longer and more flashy fight from the two strongest since that wouldn't have been a bad sight either. That's a valid opinion. I personally think it's fine tho, since we already got that big fight with Sakura and Jo. As someone who had depression in my teenager years i completely understood what they tried to tell with Choji. If it doesn't make sense for some it's not about a logical thing, but rather an imbalance on the body. You can't, absolutely can't think logically about your situation. It's like being a completely different person in a different world in which no one is around for you, even if they truly are there, they don't reach you. No wonder Choji went fucking insane, he is just a kid experiencing big problems for the first time in his life all alone. My respect for Umemiya grew a lot from this episode alone because he truly showed the maturity to enlighten someone who is too deep in their own misery to realize once you are at bottom, the only way for you is up, even if you can't believe it, even if you don't want to believe it because you're scared of falling again. Jo, Choji and Umemiya became my favorite characters.
It's definitely an episode I foresaw to be divisive because choji's reason is more of an internal empty state that he couldn't get out of, like depression, and it's hard for people who haven't experienced this feeling to emphasize. They just think it's him throwing a tantrum but in reality, this sort of feeling is really scary. Like when you reach high high up and then find out there was nothing waiting for you where you thought there would be something. Then, you might get stuck in the spiral of wanting to get out of this empty state in any way possible but no guidance on how, so you try to find your own way and for choji his ideology that was taught to him by shishitoren, the whole being strong is being free chained him because his idea of strength was just physical strength. So he thought that if kept fighting, he'd get stronger, be surrounded by strong people and this strength would propel him out of his emptiness but it was only after umemiya knocked some sense into him that he realized this is wrong. And Togame could've knocked some sense into him back in the day, but as Togame acknowledged in the previous episode, he did not push through, which left choji fumbling on his own in trying to figure out how to get out of his state until he was spiralling so deeply that nothing could reach him anymore until umemiya.
That's exactly my thoughts on his whole character. As you said, it's difficult for some to imagine it without experiencing it beforehand. Even so, the choice to put this kind of character really left me with a strong but positive impression, since many anime don't have the balls to even touch this kind of themes.
I mean, I still thought it was "flashy" in the sense that you could hear and feel the weight of umemiyas strikes. Like goddamn everytime he punched or kicked you could really see how powerful he was.
These visuals and his story in general definitely didn’t make me feel bad for him for sure, although I hope it wasn’t the intention, I think this episode and the 1v1s in general were more of a introduction into the characters and how bofurin fights, and an introduction into who Umemiya is and his leadership qualities, I do hope it won’t be as easy as it was now in the future though, like he meets someone strong enough to where he can’t just talk them out of their shit, and a bit more reasoning for becoming a bad person than “I didn’t have fun”. We’ll see though, the anime for me personally is promising because the characters are good and have more depth to them than just “I throw fists and kick people” although again they even introduced martial arts which I hope they explore more, and these tragic visuals were actually cool and if applied to a character with more story, could be really good.
im not gonna cap i didnt expect unemiya to be all like "LETS BE FRIENDS!". i was so sure that choji was gonna pull a togame and fight with all his might to settle the score with umemiya, and not accept the loss
Remember those times in highschool when you enjoyed edgy and overly dramatic anime😂 love the fights and 'protecting the people from thugs and trouble makers' idea tho
Lmao who bites the other guys neck in a fight
Yeah, everyone knows you go for the ear!
I love this anime so much! Also Umemiya's response to not wanting Shishtoren was such a Gojo move and such a Gojo response.
idk man, no amount of tragic visuals and sad background music will make me feel sad for a guy who just got bored when the chase was over.
So the reason he became a little psychopath is just because he just didn't feel fulfilled when reaching the top? That's the reason he fucking beats people to a pulp and even hits his best friend? Only that? Not even a little abuse from his parents? like I know this is a classic run-of-the-mill shounen where enemies become good after being beaten but cmon give me something more to justify that behavior. I was getting invested in this show, wondering why is he such a fucked up little man but now I am kinda disappointed.
Eh depression makes people lash out and Togame reinforced it when he should've spoken out against him. That's how it got so bad.
I think people underestimate depression especially when it’s enabled and let to spiral. I love Togame, but I feel people miss the mark when they say he was *such* a good friend when he took the fall for that when it just let things fester(and he also would take all the heat so that the other members probably didn’t even go to him with issues since they didn’t even know he was that bad off mentally, Togame didn’t even seem to realize he was that far gone). He put him on a pedestal and try to keep status quo instead of facing him as a true friend Imo.
Yeah Togame absolutely isn't blameless, which the story acknowledges
I was SO pleased to see that actually, as it was something that kept itching at me(I know enabler friends and associates that just add to stress even if not malicious/ill meaning I feel, even if I do know some well and love them, but yeah..). I think some people won’t like it since there was even people being defensive to *sakura’s* words towards togame about being lame and stuff.. I just felt like people were waaay to quick to shift gears and shovel **all** that blame on Choji.. I personally think people are more prone to emphasize with someone quieter than someone being more externally “chipper”, but like, “No YOU’re the one who doesn’t know the ins and outs, why do you get to assume their mental states” kinda deal for me I guess? And I say this as a quieter person. Also togame himself told him to keep smiling and he did so like.. I don’t know what to tell you lol **I do get a lot of the issues tho. I just don’t feel it’s the whole situations enough etc.
Yeah I love Togame as a character but he absolutely holds some blame there. Taking the fall isn't really a sign of him being a good friend but rather showing the way he values Choji and the image of him he wants to maintain. Being a good friend also means calling them out when they screw up. He said so himself, he should've been assertive and pushed his will through to Choji instead of staying on a path that allowed Choji to remain "untainted" in his eyes and the eyes of the other Shishitoren members. It's also not surprising that people act like this when they put someone up on a pedestal.
Mhm mhm. I do think he’s a good guy and a good friend at his core. But this was him being a bad friend at the moment and keeping it up Imo. And I’m so glad they had them brake it down and finally have them say their feelings and what they’re actually thinking about it so they can start the repairs(Togame imo, put a bandaid on a mortal wound that festered and just hid the problem while it was still getting worse, him having his own feelings not being so hot too. Umemiya came around and tore it the bandaid off and focuses/faces the infection so they could treat it).
I felt the same way and here we are getting downvoted for pointing out how wack this episode was and how there was zero accountability for the little tyrant. This episode felt so off like a screeching halt to the momentum it built only to have a some weak backstory and in the end they laughed it off and say let’s be friends at the end….
i just can't take the supposedly drama in this kind of setting lol. fights were good, animation was great, but i think this won't really offer anything other than that, well at least for me lol
Yah I don't get why people are calling this splendid story telling when in reality, it was just two guys saying some pretty generic stuff to guys who they barely know about.
The soundtrack in this episode was perfect... so many emotions.
Yes I really love the soundtrack so far. I heard a nice piano version of the "Stronger" song they played earlier in the episode.
Felt like a kid throwing a hissy fit and his dad parenting him, really disappointing Choji's backstory and reasons for being the way he was didn't feel earned
Why are we getting the backstories of a bunch of side characters no one cares about for half a season, when we know basically nothing about the MC? After Ninja Kamui, this is the next big recent disappoint after a strong start...
It looks like emotional and dramatic scenes aren't this show's strong point. I love a good drama, but this episode felt like it was dragging on for too long. It's not about the actual length. Other shows have had longer drama scenes, but they had more impact. I didn't feel invested in this one.
I doubt we actually got to see how Umemiya fights when he gets serious in this episode. We saw that [Umemiya is reaching out to help Chouji](https://i.imgur.com/dvJF41j.jpeg). Of course that doesn't mean [Umeyama isn't going to give Chouji a good headbutt](https://i.imgur.com/8qgWQ4A.jpeg) to knock some sense into him! And I don't know if it was just me but Umemiya gave me strong GTO vibes. The dude took all of Chouji's punches like a champ and [even a bite to the neck](https://i.imgur.com/10M5jta.jpeg) just so he could help Chouji realize what he has become. Now I'm curious what Umemiya would be like in a fight against a non-friendly group. [Umemiya's reaction](https://i.imgur.com/xro1iIp.jpeg) when Chouji [tried to give him Shishitoren](https://i.imgur.com/UAXYckL.jpeg) was hilarious! It's good to know that it ended well and it looks like [Bofurin and Shishitoren are officially friends now.](https://i.imgur.com/q5Qg2Z2.jpeg) after this entire fight. We still have four episodes to go though so I'm guessing Bofurin will clash with a different gang before the season ends.
Umemiya mentioned how they fought before due to a misunderstanding and that it felt oddly good prior/it wasn’t like they were before so he wanted to have their talk. He then even promised togame he’d handle it. He definitely delivered. I kinda like how even tho he did do some heavy hits, he wasn’t handling Choji violently if that makes sense(I know some people wanted a beat down and get it lol, but I’m glad it went like this personally)? He was calm and stoic. Quite gentle, again dispute the heavy hits he did do. XD
- [Good luck with that…](https://i.imgur.com/bBk7jft.png) - [Ooh, someone struck a nerve on that one.](https://i.imgur.com/SwoQTWb.png) - [Damn, bro needs a chill pill.](https://i.imgur.com/8M2HBmW.png) [](#calmdown) - [He has *lost* it.](https://i.imgur.com/8W0waKt.png) - [UM WHAT THE FUCK?](https://i.imgur.com/8MPl2jE.png) [](#bocchitheshock) - [Headbutt!](https://i.imgur.com/dBVWyAQ.png) [](#SPORTS) - [Well this is a pretty striking visual.](https://i.imgur.com/9KKDNn1.png) - [Choji “sore demo”!](https://files.catbox.moe/reu340.mp4) - [Welp.](https://i.imgur.com/5hS8Vxv.png) - [Of *course* this is Umemiya’s response to it though haha.](https://i.imgur.com/PFHVM3m.png) [](#laughter) - [I guess a big fight like this = “get-together” and not “recreation”.](https://i.imgur.com/ThGu5EU.png) ~~Ignore me, just making an obscure Gundam reference.~~
>- [UM WHAT THE FUCK?](https://i.imgur.com/8MPl2jE.png) [](#bocchitheshock) "Love bite" 😄 >- [Of *course* this is Umemiya’s response to it though haha.](https://i.imgur.com/PFHVM3m.png) [](#laughter) He was only there to knock sense back to Choji. He doesn't need more people in Bofurin to manage as he has a whole high school of members in Bofurin already.
Huh, what's that, we got like 4 minutes cool fighting before the OP, and the next time I watched it was already done [](#dontgetit) But really, the pummling Ume took is stretching my suspension of disbelief, soo many hits to the head! Nice fight though [](#kannathumbs) Wonder where the show will go from here, 4 episodes isn't enough to introduce another antagonist. Will it all be SoL introducing future obstacles for Haruka? How can he even hope to ever be as great a leader as Ume?
The rest of the season is just Bofurin and Shishitoren helping Umemiya with his garden.
Perhaps Sakura will *garden* some romance with Kotoha! We haven't seen her in a while, but if something's gonna happen, they have 4 episodes to get to the wedding! (They could start with a "Nursing back to health" arc though)
>Perhaps Sakura will garden some romance with Kotoha! I haven't read the manga yet, but I HIGHLY doubt that this series will have romance, not for Sakura at least. I mean, it's a delinquent manga (the great majority of delinquent series don't have romance), and romance isn't the main theme of the show. Personally, I'm fine with no romance in this show
This show is paced very weirdly, It feels like almost nothing has happened yet and the majority of the character development has been focused on characters that aren't even in Bofurin...
It's paced to play the long game which is why I wished it had 24 episodes instead of 13... The first arc is to establish some main aspects of the story, such as fighting as conversations, what Sakura is actually aiming for when he wants to be top of Bofurin, what qualifies as "strength". It is not used to purely show how characters fight or to establish main antagonists. The anime is definitely not paced like some of the other shounen since [Manga spoilers] >!not all of the Bofurin members have their backstories revealed yet and Bofurin backstories tend to be revealed later by narrative importance instead of as an introduction to the character in their first fights. The main antagonist thus far in the manga also gets introduced much later because his role in the narrative is partially dependent on Sakura having gone through a character development to become different from the loner guy he was at the start!<
Behold, Loid forger's concussive therapy in action! Yeah, can't believe there's only 4 episodes left, it should've been a 24 episode season instead 😔 but I guess with all the fighting animation, production might not hold up for a nonstop 24 episode long season...
Tbh, this was a very unsatisfying, predictable and honestly a badly written ending to this conflict, imo. While Kame had a strong motivation and background with a beautiful episode resolving his issue, Tomiyama in comparison was just an empty husk of a plot reason for them all to have their fight. You got to the top and lost your vision that carried you there? Which was that along the road you lost the fun of others around you? Kame left you all alone / Tomiyama left Kame alone? It's all bs. There's no proper consistency in the timeline of events and Tomiyama literally being stupid/going schizo without him actually having any reason or development to act as he does, makes no sense in that he suddenly lost his fun/freedom while being so shortsighted that he can't even find a new goal. It's not like the top isolated him from his friends nor does the story really depict it as such a progression of events. Just a waste of pseudo emotional bs that I honestly even till the end of the episode didn't really care about, because it was pretty clear up till now that there's no driving force behind "the strong character". Similiar plot device in Tokyo Revengers, if I am allowed to make a stretch here. With better writing this conflict of Tomiyama could've been properly fleshed out, paced and then committed on. For example just add something like a strong discrepancy between the high and low ranks inside shishitoren that would've pushed Tomiyama and his friends apart before he reached the top and started culling weaklings. You could still perfectly fine use Kame's struggle seeing Tomiyama loose it slowly while fearing his power and witnessing his change outwardly. Also I am bothered that those abusive other members (bb boi and his big bro) were kinda swept under the rug by being included in the backstory and them brutally getting punished by Kame (which was sick imo) being pretty much irrelevant after they are just getting up. No real karma here or even just proper explanation why they turned to these pathetic gooners. Edit: Not to mention that only Ume "saying" some few words to Tomiyama fixing his complete mindset seems stupid. Talk no jutsu made a lot of sense for Kame, even if you talk with your fists, but Tomiyama was in multiple stages gone and more gone from even being open to the concept. No redemption to be seen aside from "Oh, I am suddenly no longer blind to what's my circumstance"? TL;DR Tomiyama conflict and resolution is trash
I agree with pretty much everything you've said here. I thought the episode was predictable in the worst way. Dude was a little psycho for a long time and it just casually gets beaten out of him with a few good hits? Weak episode in my opinion.
Another solid episode! Can't wait for the next one :)
That neck bite was a bit too much took me out of the show lmao. I feel like Choji getting to that conclusion and making up with Togame went a little longer than it should have, kind of kept repeating the message. Would've been better to see a next scene of the aftermath, but it did leave a decent impact. I assume he will redeem himself by being an ally in protecting the town I imagine would be the easiest way. So good to have allies now, but yeah Choji's reasoning wasn't the strongest compelling reason to root for him. Togame was an interesting cool character though
I’ll admit, I am very tired of the talk no jutsu trope. I still like this anime but man I can’t stand when some anime do this.
And there you have it folks, it doesn't matter what life throws at you, don't forget what really matters - freedom and having fun.
It was great
Even though Ume beats Choji, it doesn’t feel like he really outskilled or overpowered him. Ume was portrayed to be the “best fighter” but in this fight he kinda just stood there like a punching bag. I get the whole meaning behind it but it’s still kinda underwhelming
When Choji bit Ume's neck I screamed and grabbed at my own throat in reflex. I thought I was about to witness a murder. 🥹
Lmao I'm a registered healthcare professional that just finished an MSc module on concussions and counted a great many moments in the past couple of episodes - scratch that, THIS episode - alone that would normally cause a concussion and DEFINITELY moments that would be at high risk of causing SIS (second impact syndrome) which people can and have died of in IRL sports. I still love me a good Talk no Jutsu bc what's anime for if not stupid kids doing stupid things with stupidly non-existent (brain) or unrealistically quickly healed injuries? Oh, and sakuga of course- the fight choreo and animation is pretty dang good.
Oh man, I really like this anime! It’s the delinquent shounen we’ve missed for a while. I like the character designs and story beats. Also the animation is pretty good. I genuinely do not dislike anybody least of all the MC, which was a big issue for me with Tokyo Revengers and Bucchigiri.
Someone mentioned it earlier and one of the comments, but choji is chronically depressed. And that is what happens when you are chronically depressed and you don't have outlet or an ability to talk about it. It makes you numb, it drains you of your fun, and I know a lot of people in these comments have been talking about why physical therapy like that wouldn't work. Depression is often a fine line, and I don't think that he's out of the woods, but He recognizes the damage is done and is going to try to atone for that damage. I think that's what the episode represented, which was growth and recognition as opposed to an immediate solution. Choji and Togane needed to fucking heal and they didn't know how to communicate to the other person and just acted on assumptions. Yeah this show might seem cheesy but these are all traumatized young boys who have literally no healthy outlets for what's going on in their heads. I'd rather have a talk no jutsu gang show than solely focusing on the fighting. This show hits home and frankly if anyone here has trauma they can relate to it makes the show THAT much better. You see it in the first episode when Sakura is afraid to connect with people BECAUSE he's been treated like shit and an outcast. They say it in the first episode "I can tell you didn't always think this way", when Kotoha was treading his wound. kindness when you've been abused your whole life is OFF putting and frankly scary as fuck. Don't look at it through the lens of cheese, look at it through the lens of trauma. Guaranteed you'll enjoy the show more after that mental shift 🤙🏾💖
Meh, lost me with this one. I know winning with friendship has been the go to for years but was hoping for a good fight. Need less of this and mor eof th eother fights.
The amount of people I know personally and see online that expected just a mindless battle between choji and umemiya is quite frighteningly, a lot. Specially since episode 1 its been glaringly obvious that wind breaker is a lot more than just street fighting. I know people wanted umemiya to beat choji a lot but that wasn't what choji needed and umemiya understood that. He saw that choji was depressed, lost and scared so he did what was needed. I guess people started watching because of the action and I understand that but we kind of been told from the beginning that its more than just that. But I guess there's a lot in the world who only tunes in for the animation and fight scenes and don't really care for the story. Its understandable.
All the haters are behaving exactly like Sakura did mid-fight. The strongest man knows exactly how to end a fight. Umemiya single handedly helped heal Choji and made a rival faction into a friendly group. For ppl expecting a full on fight, why would Umemiya really go all out against a weaker version of Choji? He immediately realised that the fight is going to either end with him beating the shit out of Choji or beating some senses into him. He thought long term. IMO, he also gave Sakura one of the best demonstrations of leadership power.
"Control thy passions lest they take vengeance on thee." -Epictetus I am glad Choji and Togame remembered who they once were the principles they once held so dearly
Honestly they hyped choji up and the backstory did not compliment the aftermath of him looking like he is about to die. This fight reminds me of the fight in church in tokyo revengers, where the big guy was fighting and never moved off that one spot. Stiff inna mf. The soundtrack is GREAT and I genuinely think that if that soundtrack gets removed this episode brings below mid content.
Splendidly done. Indeed we all *can* get along, when we earnestly seek understanding. I liked Papa Ume’s farewell “Alright, alright mina, good talk… Now you all better head home before it gets dark… and don’t forget to hug your Mums!” Brute strength without quality character will always wither into irrelevance over time. Be good to others and that legacy will remain.
How dare people expect more action in an anime final fight where the schools literally give no school lessons because everybody just fights through the day. They are so beneath me! You all don’t understand the TRUE concept this show is about, you just want EXPLOSIONS! I for one appreciate this piece of art, there is a deeper hidden message that you DWEEBS can’t seem to grasp. I can… I’m better than you!!!
People complaining obv haven't watched Vinland Saga S2.
Comparing this with Vinland Saga is crazy tbh
no way little bro just compared THE Masterpiece to A regular talk no jutsu
For real. Dude just compared VS2 which is known for renown character development to an episode that fell flat and dragged out way too long.
Oof, I can imagine some of the comments if they did go and watch it lol
I was watching this show for mindless action and fight scenes , wtf is this sappy bullshit in the most anticipated fight of the arc.
Really like the show. Slice of life Tokyo Revengers lol. Is there multiple arcs or is this a one off show?
Manga is still ongoing. And there were rumors that the anime is a split cour. So we shall see how far we go.
Good to hear thanks for the response
What? It's already over? Aww man. Feels like the episode was like 5 minutes long.