Ore no Kanojo to Osananajimi ga Shuraba Sugiru - 5

"The Truth of the Love Letter is a Battleground"

Well if it isn't Rikka; what are you doing in Oreshura?

It was about time for the third love interest to make her appearance, though I didn't quite expect Akishino Himeka (Hisako Kanemoto) to be a complete stranger with chunnibyou delusions. I was sure she was at least a childhood friend of some sort, but I was wrong. Apparently, Eita caught her interest when he was busy getting the stuffing beat out of him by those senpai last week and now she's under the impression that in a past life she and he were an item. Interestingly, however, Himeka isn't the focus of the episode at all, though her appearance is foreshadowed by a series of love letters she's been leaving in Eita's locker. That honor (thankfully) goes to Masuzu, whose past is finally starting to come to light. I still prefer Masuzu over Chiwa (who has become a bit more grating on the nerves lately, and denser the longer I get to know her) and I probably prefer her over Himeka as well, though we don't know nearly enough about her for me to say that with absolute conviction.

There's nothing really special about Masuzu, to be honest. She's hardly the first character of her type in an anime, nor is she the type you usually want to root for. Even her background, which likely has to do with family expectations, isn't unique, but she's still the reason I watch Oreshura every week. Maybe it's just that she's so nonchalantly cruel about things, or that she takes JoJo as seriously as I do Eureka Seven, but she's just more interesting than anything else the series has to offer. Even Eita, who stepped up his game a little this week by not wasting time worrying about how embarrassing CPR is, or by brushing off Mana Natsukawa's (Nao Touyama) kiss off like it was nothing, isn't that fun to watch. Masuzu is just such a ridiculous character (it's been a while since I've seen someone drown that stupidly in an anime) that everyone else pales in comparison. However, even Masuzu was bound to have her romcom issues, and her sister seems to be a part of that. Whatever it is that her family did to her, it probably has a direct link to why Masuzu hates love.

The biggest annoyance to me, however, remains Chiwa and the manner in which she goes after Eita. Eita is half at fault, it's true, but it's asking too much from the author to get him to open his eyes at this point. The same can be said for Chiwa, but because she's giving deliberate hints about her feelings, I can't understand why she wouldn't just say it outright and get it over with. How much more effort is it to confess clearly than it is to ask a guy to wipe your back or to state that you want him to stay with you forever? They're pretty close in magnitude, I'd say, and that's what frustrates me. Her relationship with Masuzu, however, has gotten a little more interesting. Both girls have some level of enmity towards each other, but they still talk to each other and hold club activities normally, as if they were friends rather than rivals. In fact, the two are both equally indignant at the new girl, and it's likely they really will join forces to keep Himeko out of the picture.