| Azumanga Daioh #5: Seniors! |
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| Thursday, 05 May 2005 | |
 Hmm. When Volume 4 of Azumanga Daioh paid another visit to the school festivals, I wrote "I sense we'll be
seeing them again at some stage, too."
Ding! Correct. As the girls head into their final year, the
beach trip & sports fest make another appearance, giving me a
horrible feeling of deja vu. For sheer "Awww..." value, though,
don't miss Sakaki's new feline friend....20 - Third Year It's the beginning of the girls' final year in high school. For Osaka, the main problem is having to walk to the thrid floor every day, but for Kaorin there's a much bigger problem - she's been transferred to Kimura-sensei's class, and away from her beloved Sakaki. It's only the beginning of the year, but already Yukari-sensei's getting worked up about exam results, and her mood isn't helped any when Nyamo gets a birthday gift from her class - something her class has never done. Menawhile, the girls are having to start thinking about career paths, although not eveyone's convinced when Tomo announces she's going to join Interpol...   21 - School Trip It's time for the class school trip, and they're on their way to Okinawa - once they've finished teasing Chiyo-chan about the trip being cancelled. There's sightseeing to do & a diving trip, before Sakaki's greatest dream comes true when she gets to stroke an Iriomote wildcat - without getting her hand bitten off, either. Meanwhile, Kaorin's still trying to fend off Kimura-sensei...   22 - Entrance Exams Study Camp! Summer break, but with college entrance exams approaching there's not going to be much time for fun - this year, it's all studying. But you may as well study in the nicest surroundings, so it's off to Chiyo-chan's summer house for Summer Holiday Study Camp, although there's no escaping the terror of the Yukarimobile this year. Once at the summer house, though, the beach somehow manages to become the number one priority, while Nyamo's lack of knowledge is shown up when some of the girls ask her for study help...   23 - Last Sports Fest in High School It's sports fest time again - time for Yukari -vs- Nyamo, Round Three. There's a new set of events this year, and to Osaka's delight there's a bread-eating contest. Before the contests come around though, there's preparations to be made - which would be a lot easier if Tomo wasn't spending her time wrecking things, Osaka's plans for domination in the bread-eating race are thwarted by there being too many varities of bread on offer - she just can't decide what to eat, while Kaorin loses it completely when she sees Sakaki in the boys' uniform. A match made in heaven...   AzuDai's nothing if not consistent - I predict episode 24 will be another culture fest episode. Any takers? If you've been watching Azumanga Daioh this far, you'll know what to expect - the basic style of the show hasn't changed any since it started, rather it's just the changes the girls have had to deal with over the time that are used to make the comedy. Sakaki gets the best treatment with this batch of episode, both with poor Kaorin being forced to watch her from afar while dealing with Kimura-sensei's obsession with her (the fate worse than death), and with her finally being able to cuddle a cat when she meets her friendly Iriomote wildcat. Still more than capable of bringing a smile to my face - even if it is rehashing some old territory, it's done in a way that's still enjoyable. Worth watching. |
