みなみけ～おかわり～ Ep. 08

SPOILER Summary: Haruka is doing some shopping at a local shop in the shopping district when the lady of the shop gives her a bunch of tickets to a new pool and onsen resort that’s opened in the next town over. Kana is excited by this and immediately starts inviting “the gang” over while Chiaki frets, as she doesn’t know how to swim. She gets online to research swimming when Kana comes in. Not wanting Kana to know her secret, Chiaki “flips” screens on the computer, leading Kana to tease her about cruising porn sites. When Kana tries to find out what Chiaki was looking at, Chiaki slugs her.

At school the next day, Uchida and Yoshino are excited by the Saturday pool trip, but Chiaki’s attitude makes them wonder why she seems so opposed to going. Makoto grabs Touma in the hall because he doesn’t know whether to accept the invitation or not. The problem is that he was invited as “Mako-chan.” Touma has an idea to help him out. Meanwhile at the junior high, Fujioka also has tickets to the same pool for Saturday and invited Kana to come. She accepts and tells him to be at her house Saturday morning, which naturally makes him very happy.

Saturday morning comes and Fujioka is depressed to see that this will be another Minami group outing and not just himself and Kana. The girls are all wearing swimsuits under their clothing (it still being winter) and “show off the goods.” Even “Mako-chan” has a swimsuit that Touma picked out which hides the fact that in fact he’s Makoto. The Minami’s cousin Takeru is again the driver and as with the onsen trip, he grills Fujioka about his relationship with the girls (who play cards in the back of the van). When Takeru mentions Kana seems taken with Fujioka, this is the best news Fujioka could get, seeing as how he wasn’t sure how Kana thought of him. However, Takeru can’t grill Fujioka further because it is clear that he’s somehow gotten them lost.

Finally arriving at the hotel at lunch time, Chiaki is determined to swim and makes a big commotion of leaving the restaurant for the pool area. However, when Kana insults her after Chiaki is gone, Chiaki is suddenly back to defend herself. Kana realizes that Chiaki can’t swim and hearing Touma’s mentioning that people in school refer to Chiaki as “hime” (princess), Kana uses this to her advantage to tease Chiaki poolside. Chiaki decides to turn tables on Kana by embracing the princess label and ordering that idiots leave her kingdom.

In the end, Kana is helping Chiaki to swim (Chiaki being determined to swim 25-meters) and whenever Chiaki gives her grief, she lets go so that Chiaki flounders. At one point she ends up even being rescued by Fujioka. Meanwhile, Hayami-senpai has made a Volleyball Club meeting at the same pool-resort, so Haruka’s friends Maki and Atsuko are there. Hearing Haruka is sleeping, Hayami is up to no good. Kana’s friends Riko and Keiko are also at the pool, Riko a flutter seeing Fujioka. In the end, Kana tells everyone (including Haruka’s friends) they can come by the apartment (condo?) when they get back to the city. Maki and Hayami then toss the still sleeping Haruka into the pool.

Thoughts: Mildly amusing at times, but not funny and mostly dull to me. *sigh* But hey, those who get off on lots of fanservice had their springs wound. After all, if we can only muster a pathetic imitation of the original Minami-ke, throw in a lot of fanservice for the otaku and everything will be Oh-kay. Not.