We’re back from our trips! Joe recaps Boston while Sarah recaps New York! The Northeast United States. Big cities! People. Great! Then we talk about movies and tv as per usual.

In HanaKimi it’s time for a summer job. Mizuki, Izumi, and Nakatsu get roped into working for Dr. Umeda’s sister. And? What’s this? A love rival appears for some reason? And he’s, a college guy, and he’s kind of irritating but also kind of normal. Weird! Sure hope this plays out in a fun way!

We hit the midpoint of Hanakimi. But first Joe talks about Dune (1984) and then we talk about TV for some reason. Sarah meanwhile has been working out while watching Anime because she is very productive!

In Hana-Kimi, we resolve our drunken kiss with a drunken fist. Then we fly through a brief bully arc until, big bro comes to town, dun dun duhhhhnnnn. Mizuki has to pretend to be a girl again and convince him that she should be allowed to stay. Oh yeah, and Izumi can high jump now or whatever, so, uh good for him.

This week characters consider if they’re gay or whatever. Not us though, Sarah recounts her disappointment with singles events while Joe got into the sweet embrace of roller coasters. How exciting.

In HanaKimi, things pick up…and are put back down as we fly through some shoujo staple tropes with little to show for them. Having your period while undercover? No big deal. Getting a dress as a gift from back home. Don’t worry about it. Accidentally getting drunk? Who know? Maybe it’ll count!

This week we start a brand new show. We attempt to reintroduce ourselves but find that our lives are kind of boring right now. Hm, maybe it’s just the changing of the seasons…

And speaking of change, in HanaKimi our protagonist Mizuki decides to move to Japan and go undercover to attend an all-boys school and for her totally-not-romantic admiration of high jump star Izumi Sano. Or maybe I should say, FORMER high jump star dramatic music plays because he’s quit. Mizuki now has to navigate pretending to be a boy in the school for pretty boys while convincing Izumi to get back to what really matters, jumping real high.

Content Warning: Sexual Assault & Abuse

We finish off out Utena watching with the 1999 movie! And speaking of movies, Joe has finally watched Project Hail Mary and had a good time with that! Meanwhile Sarah has started running again.

Then we grapple with the Adolescence of Utena. The hair, the hair! So different! Also, more ghosts?? And, wait, what’s that noise in the distance? It sounds like…the engine of a car? No way, Utena isn’t a series about cars right?? There’s no way that could be!

This week we revolutionaize the world. But first, Joe makes Sarah learn facts about Star Fox and complains about realistic looking animals. Sarah thrills with her allergy test results and excitement for Love Island's return.

In Utena, we have the final duel called Revolution! Utena and Anthy finally talk to one another and we learn all about how much Akio sucks. Also there’s a duel but that’s pretty much not the point of this episode. What’s actually important is cool flying sword animations. Yeah, those are awesome!

This week we gain the power of revolution! But first, Joe recaps his adventure to Chicago and Sarah retracts a proclamation.

In Utena, we get some long awaited backstory. That’s right, the Kashira shadow troupe take the main stage! Then we finish off our duels with a re-rematch with Touga as he tries to prove he’s more than just a pretty face.

This week Nanami tries to climb the ladder.

In our real lives, Sarah has gotten a new puppy to add to the litter, while Joe has watched some less well known cartoon movies. Big stuff!

In Utena, Nanami learns that family is not all that it’s cracked up to be. She stays with Utena, Anthy, and Akio, which is a terrible idea. And tries to run away but barely misses the mark. Then we get a part recap-part plot imperative episode that leaves us all feeling bad. Strange to think we only have six episodes left!