Other Way Around, Dummy
Episode 10 of Romantic Killer begins with Anzu leaving work and stumbling upon Junta, Tsukasa, and Tsuchiya. Hijiri introduces himself to Tsukasa. Hijiri departs while Anzu walks home with Junta and Tsukasa. Anzu ponders all the fun she’s had with these two and eventually runs into Saki, who’s shocked to see Junta and Tsukasa with Anzu. ..
Anzu tells Saki that Junta is staying with her because his brother kicked him out of his house. Saki confirms that she stopped by Anzu’s house because her brother was being a jerk and he was going to invite his drunk friends over, so she texted her dad to make sure he was taking care of it. After some chatting, Anzu and Saki head into Anzu’s room to discuss some things. ..
Saki and Tsukasa are talking about their relationship when they hear someone coming. It’s Anzu, who tells them she has a plan to tell Saki about Riri. When Anzu tries to tell her she receives a weird stomach issue and rushes to the bathroom, Tsukasa bumps into Saki. Saki tells him that they’re alike and says he doesn’t need to worry about Anzu as she’s a trustworthy person. Meanwhile, Anzu sulks in the bathroom, and Riri pops up. They tell Anzu she can’t reveal anything about the romance plan.
It was stated in Riri’s contract’s fine print, which she didn’t read. He says if she tries breaching confidentiality, Riri’s magic will wreck her stomach. In Anzu’s room, Saki tells Anzu they should attend a summer festival to celebrate their summer break. Anzu rests before giving a response. We receive a flashback highlighting Saki’s earlier days in school, where boys gossiped about her looks and other things.
Saki wishes she looked more like an average person. Anzu, a popular girl in Saki’s school, tells her that she looks like an “ordinary person” and makes fun of her. Saki drops her stuff and is scolded by her friends for doing so. Anzu helps Saki defend herself and they both end up being friends.
Since then, Anzu’s been helping Saki deal with all her insecurities. Anzu’s help led to Saki establishing a healthy companionship with Mori, a senior at their school. As they discuss more, Saki’s unsure if she wants her relationship with Mori to feel romantic. One day, as Saki and Mori walk, Mori asks Saki if he can help him study at his house.
Saki is embarrassed and ashamed of how she’s been behaving. She’s worried about what people will think of her if they find out about her relationship with Mori. She’s also concerned about the rumors being spread about her. Saki is determined to show everyone that she’s a strong and independent woman who can handle herself.
Saki feels embarrassed and doesn’t like what people are saying about her. Anzu tells the bully that Saki isn’t a violent person and orders everyone to stop gossiping about her. Anzu confronts Mori about his lies. Mori says he’s telling the truth, but Anzu doesn’t buy it. She knows Mori was trying to force himself upon Saki and threatens to let everyone know if he doesn’t stop. ..
Saki: I’m happy to have someone like me in my life. In the morning, Riri suggests they all head to the summer festival. Anzu and Tsukasa aren’t on board, but Junta doesn’t mind. He asks the two to reconsider, and Anzu and Tsukasa decide to go. The group put on their yukatas and headed for the festival. The group loses sight of Junta in the crowd.
Anzu and Ryuya hold hands as they walk together. The others in the group, Junta included, take notice and ask who he is. Ryuya tells them that Tsukasa is a friend from school and that he needs Anzu’s help to ask her on a date. Anzu interrupts their conversation and the group parts ways. ..
Mori’s friends start taunting Saki as they stumble upon her and the others. Saki starts calling for Anzu’s help, but Makoto picks up on the situation and leaves with her.
Makoto tells Saki that he knows she was feeling uncomfortable around Mori. Saki thanks Makoto, and the two decide to visit some booths. Meanwhile, Anzu’s eating her caramel apple while Tsukasa looks around. He notices she’s wearing the bracelet he got her during their shopping trip. Anzu asks Tsukasa if he wants to take a selfie with her. When she snaps the photo, everyone jumps into the picture.
Anzu is surprised to see Hijiri at the event, but he says he’s here to see the fireworks. Hijiri hands Tsuchiya some shaved ice and tears up. After the event, a strange woman is looking up photos of Tsukasa. The episode concludes with the woman smirking saying she’s finally located Tsukasa.
The Episode Review
While this episode felt as laid-back as the previous one, it establishes more groundwork for some side characters while giving fans something to ponder. Saki’s backstory with Anzu was something that caught me by surprise. While she serves as a fun supporting character, I didn’t expect the anime to delve into their friendship. The circumstances that led to their bond were shocking and tense. ..
Although Romantic Killer has touched upon health issues before, it hasn’t delved into anything too dark. Saki’s instance with her ex-boyfriend caught me off guard. I’m sure many weren’t expecting the series to dive into any heavy themes involving sexual misconduct. This is an unfortunate issue many people face in relationships. I appreciate the anime addressing the situation from a serious standpoint.
I wasn’t sure Ryuya would be involved in Junta and Anzu’s lives anymore, but I’m glad he is. While Junta should have adopted Ryuya’s character arc, I’m happy Ryuya is trying to motivate Junta to confess his feelings for Anzu. On that note, the mysterious woman searching for Tsukasa’s photos was concerning. It’s likely she’s the other reason why Tsukasa moved to Anzu’s city. ..
The mystery surrounding Tsukasa’s past is a fun and exciting addition to the show. Fans will be excited to see how this woman plays into it, especially since she is a new character. Besides that, some fans may not enjoy this episode because it spends a lot of time informing the fans about how Saki and Anzu’s friendship came to be. Saki’s backstory could’ve been trimmed, even though it was great to see her fleshed out.
The festival shenanigans were fine but didn’t offer much outside of Ryuya, telling Junta must hurry up and confess. Overall, this was an interesting episode of Romantic Killer that offered some unexpected developments. Let’s hope the final episodes can add more intensity and drama between our protagonists. ..
