Amachan: Week 5 Episode Guide

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Week 5: "I like Senpai!"

"Is this what you stayed here for?"


Episode Summaries:

Ep. 25. After the Honki Dori, Anbe immediately leaves Kitasanriku on board the train. Everyone sees her off and wish her the best. Haruko makes it in time to say goodbye, and to apologetically return Anbe's video game. Anbe tearfully confesses to her how she really felt when Haruko left. She says she hated Haruko because she planned on being an Ama only during high school and wanted to go to college, and be an office lady or something. "But you left so it was hard to leave the club. I worked while doing Ama but I couldn't replace you... I put pressure on myself. Now I look back and it all seems stupid. We are nothing alike!" Haruko says sorry, and "Yes, we are nothing alike. I am not kind like you." But Anbe says since she came back bringing her good child Aki, all is forgiven, and the two hug it out. As Anbe leaves, her replacement as clerk at the Fishing Co-op arrives. She's Hanamaki Tamako, a tough-talking single mother. Now that the Ama season has ended, Aki and the rest of the ama-sans have nothing to do but sigh and be bored. So to while away the time, the Amas and amber miner Ben are making misanga* bracelets as a sideline. Tamako comments how they're only noisy during the summer. "You're like cicadas!" Meantime, Aki's video of her catching the uni was uploaded and has garnered a million views, even surpassing Yui's. People are also posting positive comments ("She's cute!" "I wanna go and see her!"). But at the beach, tourists who do come to see her, are disappointed to find out that the Ama tourism is over. Daikichi and the others feel frustrated over this. At the cafe, they analyze why Aki has become popular. Hibiki (Camera boy) says it's because the Japanese people all root for the underdog (Aki is the tortoise in "The tortoise and the hare"; the ant in "The ant and the grasshopper") but as a fan of Yui, he's hoping that Yui would be able to strike back. While this was happening, Yui has gone inside Ben's amber mine. She shouts at the top of her lungs inside the tunnel as Ben watches on. "Sooo frustrattiiing~!" At the Tourism Office the members of K3NSP gather for a meeting. They have to solve the problem on how to take advantage of the Ama-sans' popularity, even if the Ama season has already ended. Sugawara suggests that the Amas could continue diving in the heated public pool and just "put some uni in there." But Yayoi says the heated water could kill the uni. Sugawara: "Then, can you continue diving at least until the end of October?" Yayoi: "Then it is us who will die!" (lmao) In the end, it was suggested that Aki and Yui will do a collaboration: Yui will be first conductor while Aki will dress up as an Ama and sell unidonburi on board the KitaTetsu. Back at the amber mine, this time it is Aki who comes in to do some "therapeutic yelling." Ben is surprised but does not tell Aki that Yui had earlier dropped in too. "I wanna go back to diving in the sea~!!" Aki yells into the dark tunnel. "I wish next summer would hurry up~!!"
(*Misanga = handwoven bracelets similar to "friendship braclets"; in Japan they're for goodluck)

Ep 26. Phone calls keep pouring in, inquiring about Aki. News has spread that Yui and Aki will be doing a collaboration. Yui is not pleased because they were not even consulted to begin with. But Aki says she's okay with it. Yui tries to dissuade her since she knows Aki is not used to such things that Yui is doing (dressing up in "cosplay," being bombarded by cameras). Daikichi says not to worry because they will be standing guard and even suggests that Yui could help Aki out by "dressing up as an Ama and sell unidonburi". Without realizing it, he mentions the word "rivals" and somehow Yui suddenly changes her mind and agrees to do it. (Apparently, it's a sign that she hates to lose). Next morning, Aki and Yui do what they're told to do. The ride is jam-packed with happy passengers, taking their pictures and buying unidonburi while Daikichi and Yoshida are just over the moon. Back at the Amano home, Natsu and the rest frantically churn out more unidonburi to sell but are running out of uni. Rokuro tells them that more kilos of uni will be arriving from another village. Haruko wakes up to the ruckus and is surprised to learn about the collaboration. That night everyone is celebrating the fact that for the month of September, the KitaTetsu has finally earned a profit. "I don't even remember if this ever happened before!" an emotional Daikichi exclaims. But Haruko is not rejoicing. She tells Daikichi she will not allow Aki to do what she did that morning. "It's unsightly, turning my daughter into a spectacle." But Natsu defends the decision, saying there is nothing wrong with it. "The Ama tourism IS a service industry. It's a long cherished dream to have more customers." Haruko asks Aki if she's really okay with it. "Is this what you stayed here for?" Aki replies, "If I'm helping everyone, then I'm fine with it." However, when going home, Aki looks pensive, seemingly doubtful of her own response. Back at the bar, Sugawara and Daikichi talk about how their perception about otakus have changed. They were initially prejudiced against them but now they find them to be gentle, well-mannered, and earnest people (One even drew a fanart/manga of Yui and Aki). Daikichi says he knows he may be asking too much from the two girls but "such an opportunity may never happen again." And he thanks Haruko again for making it possible. The next morning, Aki has not arrived at the station yet for their "collaboration." So Yui goes to the Amano house to fetch her. Aki tells her she's different from Yui, after all. She's just an ordinary schoolgirl, who's not confident about her looks and feels awkward to be in such a spotlight. "All I wanna do is to dive." Yui tells her she is not ordinary, and that people came from faraway places to see her. "Regardless of looks or pleasing people, isn't enough that it's cool?" Yui's pep talk helps and both finally go to the train station to sell unidonburi. Next day in school, Yui pulls Aki along to a building where there are small circular glass windows. Aki peers inside and is astonished to find a man deep inside a pool, wearing a heavy diving suit and helmet. He looks like an astronaut. "What is this~?!"

Ep. 27. Yui takes Aki inside their high school's Civil Engineering Diving Department. The students of this course are called "Nambu Moguri" and they are expected to work in undersea construction like pipe-laying, breakwater foundation, etc. They meet diving teacher Isono Shinpei and he allows them to watch. The diver in the pool that Aki had seen earlier, has finally resurfaced and taken off his helmet. He is Taneichi Koichi, a handsome graduating student who is set to be hired by an elite company soon. As the girls introduce themselves, Aki falls instantly in love with him. At the Co-op, Aki giggles silly as she stares at a picture of Taneichi. Then while taking a nap, she has a dream of him, wherein he gives her an engagement ring. But... Aki jolts up, red in the face, and says she has had a bad dream. "In my dream, I became Yayoi-san." The blunt clerk Tamako says, "Good thing it was a just a dream." (lol I just love Tamako!) That night, Aki excitedly tells her grandma about the Nambu Moguri. "Don't tell me you want to do that?" Natsu asks. "Well, it's not possible for you." She adds. "Just took you a long time to get an uni from the bottom of the sea. How can you possibly do heavy lifting?" But Natsu says Aki's grandpa was a student of that department and he would be pleased if she became one. Meanwhile at Bar Riasu, Congressman Adachi Isao recalls his high school teaching days with his former students, Haruko, Daikichi and Sugawara. They recall how Haruko dressed up as a Sukeban (long skirt, mask, a flat clutch bag) and how she and Sugawara used to exchange a diary* ("It was over in only 3 days"). Isao recalls that when Haruko ran away from home, he wanted to search for her. "But your mother said it's okay. That you will come home someday when you're hungry." Then Isao talks about how he does not get along with his son Hiroshi. When he was in high school, he started "shutting himself off from us completely... The way he talks, everything about him gets on my nerves." Haruko defends him saying he's a good kid. Daikichi and Sugawara also agree, adding that he is a polite man, earnest at work and comes up with good ideas. Hiroshi who had been doing overtime work comes in. His father now looks at him in a new light and happily shares a drink with his "Stove" son. In school, the next day, Aki dreamily watches a helmeted diver through the circular window of the pool. She tells Yui how cool Taneichi looks. "But is that really Taneichi-senpai?" Yui notices and asks "Do you like him?" Aki proclaims suddenly that she wants to transfer to the Civil Engineering Diving Department. "I want Taneichi-senpai to teach me!" Then, hearing his name, Taneichi approaches the two. Then who is that man in the diving suit? It's actually Isono-sensei, screaming, "Lemme out of this suit! I gotta pee!"
(*koukan nikki = a shared diary among friends, or boyfriend/girlfriend)

Ep. 28. Yui asks Taneichi if Aki could try diving in a helmet suit. He says outsiders are allowed to try it, and Aki is immediately suited up. She goes down the water with Taneichi but every time their eyes meet, her heart starts pounding. She resurfaces quickly, causing Isono-sensei to panic. Aki complains of chest pains which Isono attributed to: "You're supposed to flush out the air outta the holes in your helmet!" Afterwards, Aki and Taneichi are alone talking. He compliments Aki's acquired Sodegahama accent. He also says his ancestors were Nambu Moguri, and that he preferred to be doing that than go to college. After graduation, he'll be leaving for Tokyo and work on a new runway for Haneda Airport. Aki meets up with Yui at the main station. Earlier, Hiroshi had asked Yui to pass a love letter to Aki. Yui is mortified by the thought. "I hate it! Handing a love letter from Aniki to my best friend!" Instead of giving it to Aki, she throws the letter in a bin and pulls Aki away. Yoshida who was eavesdropping again, picks it up. But before he could read it, Yui returns to snatch it from him, saying she'll have to ask Hiroshi to give it himself. That night at the bar, Yoshida tells Sugawara, Daikichi, Yayoi and Haruko about it. Haruko says she does not mind that Hiroshi is pursuing Aki since "he's a good boy anyway." The others remind her that she was earlier opposed to Hiroshi for her daughter. Haruko has a hard time remembering it but says she has changed her mind. And speaking of love letters, Haruko brought the exchange diary she had with Sugawara. The rest had a field day with it, reading out loud Sugawara's entries (hinted with puppy love) for Haruko, much to Sugawara's embarrassment. (Haruko only wrote lyrics from popular songs from that era). Anyway, Daikichi mentions that since Yui and Aki are somewhat celebrities, they have to, if possible, refrain from matters of love. "And to implicitly tell Hiroshi about that, too." Aki is in Haruko's 80s room, listening to songs, and daydreaming about Taneichi. She falls asleep there, and dreams again of her Senpai but turns into a nightmare with Isono shouting at her to "Shape up!" She is awakened by an angry Haruko, who found Aki's transfer forms for the Civil Engineering Diving Department. "What's this about?!" Aki says she wants to do Nambu Moguri so she can continue diving all year round. Haruko is upset about this sudden decision but she can see that her daughter looks really adamant about it.

Ep. 29. News has spread that Aki wants to transfer from her general course to the Civil Engineering Diving Department. She is even called by the Tourism Assoc. to talk about it. "Why do I need to have your permission?" They tell her that she is a symbol of the town's "machi-okoshi" and whatever she does affects the future of tourism. Aki says she is uncomfortable wearing the Ama uniform and selling unidonburi with people staring at her. They think of ways to change her uniform (Helmet suit + Ama = um, no). But Hibiki says Aki cannot wear conservative clothes because "reducing skin exposure is equivalent to a decrease in tourism revenues". He adds, "You can't have her wear plain clothes! She's too ordinary! People who travel 7-8 hours just to see a conservative girl wearing plain clothes? No one will come!" (He's a douche but he does have a point lol) Daikichi says they'll allow Aki to transfer departments but she still has to sell unidonburi on board the train during weekends. Aki agrees but Haruko gets mad, saying "You can't all decide this on your own!" She goes on a tirade but ends up realizing that the idea is not really that bad. She and Aki dash off to school to talk with the teacher. In school, Isono-sensei explains the course to Haruko. She is also introduced to Taneichi who just came in. Haruko can tell by looking at her daughter that Taneichi is the reason why Aki wants to transfer. As they were leaving, Haruko looks around her former high school, feeling nostalgic. She looks up at the elevated passageway where she and her gang used to hang out. She reminisce being a Sukeban and how Daikichi would show up worrying about her. Haruko smiles at the memory and thanks Aki for making her visit her former school. She also says Aki can transfer if she wants. "Well, it's better than being a Sukeban." That night, Sugawara and Daikichi are at the bar with Haruko. The two men talk about how important tourists are to their town which does not have anything much to offer. Haruko uncharacteristically defends her hometown. "Isn't it bad if you ingratiate yourselves too much to those tourists? If the locals just learn to love their resources* more (*Ama, the train, silver beeches, amber, scenery), the better they will look to the outsiders." Next day, Aki begins to take part in the male-dominated world of Nambu Moguri. She is welcomed wholeheartedly by Isono and her new classmates by singing their fighting song, "Nambu Diver." Aki feels happy as she looks forward to being guided by her tall and dashing senpai.

Ep. 30. Aki has started to pray in front of the family altar, asking for her Grandpa to guide her during her Nambu Moguri training. She gets curious and asks Natsu when her husband died. "Last year." Startled, Aki asks if she's okay. Natsu says she has gotten used to his absence and has accepted that he might die any day, out in the sea. "It's the fate of a fisherman's wife." In school, Taneichi is helping Aki review for the qualification exam for the course (If she does not pass it, she will not be allowed to continue). Aki continues studying at the train station when Hiroshi drops in on her. He asks if Aki has thought of her answer to his love confession. He also attempts to give her his love letter. But instead of taking it or answering him, Aki leaves, saying she has to study and must not think of anything else right now. And that this situation between them is "kinda awkward." But the truth is, Aki does not have the heart to say "I have somebody else I love" fearing Hiroshi might go back to his gloomy Stove-san self, sitting moodily in front of his favorite stove. But that night, Hiroshi still enters her mind and could not sleep. She gets up to drink water and finds out her Grandpa's picture at the altar is gone. Natsu says she had put it away but does not explain why. Sensing something is weird, Aki talks about it at the cafe with her mother, Ben, Daikichi, Yayoi and her husband Atsushi. Natsu has been seen, in a good mood lately, acting like a giddy teenager (singing, dressing up). Ben also says he saw Natsu and Rokuro one time at the Co-op looking rather... intimate-ish. They just could not believe that the two might be having an affair. But Yayoi says, "Rokuro has been going around places getting sea urchins for her!" Just then Natsu and Katsue arrive interrupting their gossip. The next morning, Haruko is going to interrogate her mother about it. Meanwhile, Aki is with Yui selling unidonburi on board KitaTetsu. Aki sells one to a curmudgeon-ish old man without really looking at him. But when she gets to look at him again, this time, she realizes he looks exactly like her Grandpa in his funeral picture!

Next: Week 6
Previous: Week 4

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