Okay. So perhaps it was obvious what the outcome of this episode was going to be. There wouldn’t be much of a series left if Mutta didn’t pass in some way. But the way in which the creators did it was magnificent. This is really where the slow pace of this series came fullest to its right, because this really was an episode which needed to let its twists wink in.
The first half of the episode was dedicated to show how everyone has become friends after the whole ordeal and how they immediately decided to meet again. Especially Ya-San and Fukuda were great in how their accepted their loss. The previous episode already showed this a bit, but this really sunk in today.
And I also really didn’t think that the creators would go so far… but Kenji didn’t make it. It’s an excellent twist here to show that despite his talents, he still didn’t make it and still lacked something. And in his case, it’s perhaps even for the better since he now has the time to dedicate himself to his daughter, which eh would not have had if he made it.
Rating: 6/8 (Awesome)
It was maybe obvious but the way they revealed it was downright beautiful. Fukuda being one of my favorite characters definitely had a nice sendoff and Mutta is just as lovable as ever.
Now I really wonder what can we look forward to. I guess more development on Reiji, the girls, and most interesting: Teshima. He was an underdog the beginning of the arc and I wonder how he made it, he seems to be the most complex character not in team A.
I was expecting that Jaxa would ignore the selections that the teams made (or at least just factor it in slightly).
It makes no sense that, that asshole in kenji’s team was picked. He was the main cause for trouble in the team and one of the main reasons they didn’t get to bond.
I find it hard to believe that 1) His team voted for him (why would they?) 2) Jaxa actually honored their selection, since it should have been obvious that he was causing trouble.
I also blame the series for not showing him being good at anything, so not even the “well he’s an asshole but at least he is very skilled” excuse works here.
It’s very likely that he was indeed chosen because he had the second-highest test results. Team B seemed like a very analytical team, unlike Team A, so it’s very likely that they didn’t factor in the social factor at al (remember how a few episodes ago, it was stated that they hardly interacted with each other?)
Fair enough, I can accept that he was voted based on scores.
But I find it hard to accept that Jaxa just accepts the results the applicants give them without second thought. Even in team A, where it was rock-paper-scissors, what was the point of the exam there, if in the end it was all about luck? What if someone threatened to kill everyone if they didn’t vote for him and it worked, would Jaxa still pick him?
What was the point of Jaxa supervising them, taking notes and monitoring their mental status, if they accepted whatever the applicants gave them as-is? (they used the data for the extra 2 applicants, but still).
I was expecting them to reject a couple of those that got voted (say, they picked 4 people from the ones that got voted, and 4 from the rest, that way, getting voted still got you better chances, but it wasn’t an automatic win). It still baffles me, because it made so much more sense this way, and it was also speculated to be like this from characters in the series (Kenji and Teshima). It is also extra strange because it was mentioned in this episode that it’s the first time Jaxa is doing this. You add a new thing to your exam this year and you make it “THE” deciding factor for who goes to the next phase, without knowing if it gives good results first?
Maybe there is a twist upcoming? Maybe Mutta will call Kenji and he’ll say “Oh, I got in as well! Jaxa didn’t really factor who got voted that much”.
For me it was also very strange… Also for the same reason @Puran noted above. In one episode I remember the jaxa members having this discussion, about seeing who would take the leadership, Kenji or the other, and how that would affect their relationships. But, if they knew that, and that Kenji would work for a more friendly environment why not select him? maybe they are going to explain that later on, I guess…
I actually wonder how Kitamura made it. She didn’t do anything in Team B.
Maybe it was about just having another female in the group or more probably it was based in her scientific orientation being necessary.
Kenji passed, mark my words. They only mentioned how many people passed, not who those people were.
The show is just trying to pull the wool over our eyes. The episodes have implied that JAXA went with the people that were chosen by each group, but it’s never actually outright stated.
They have no reason whatsoever to agree with the the teams selected. It really wouldn’t surprise me if JAXA replaced the asshole from team B with Kenji.