Inou Battle Wa Nichijou-kei No Naka De

The nameless assassin is back… Wait a minute! WAIT A MINUTE! I thought we were done with this chuunibyou thing?! Why the heck is it brought back up? Well actually, it is not that Chuunibyou Demo Koi Ga Shitai got a third season or anything. Because the main character of this show, Inou Battle Wa Nichijou-kei No Naka De also ‘suffers’ from this chuunibyou syndrome, I guess it brought back those unwanted-cum-embarrassing memories. And I thought I would be done with it once that second season of that anime ends but they had to make me remember it again. Oh dear… Oh my… Some things will never leave your past. Ever.

So we have an abundance of high school romance comedy harem animes throughout the years. Each trying to stand out on its own. Some making it, some pretty memorable, some just decent while others fail so badly that they never had another season and faded into obscurity and into the back of our memories. Heh. So what else is there to make this genre stand out? Why not make your chicks have a unique super power each? That’s it! A super power high school romance comedy harem. No people, it’s not going to be as epic as you think like an alternate world of Superman owning Wonder Woman, Harley Quinn, Catwoman, Raven and Hawkgirl. It’s about a group of high school students of a club one day suddenly for unknown reasons developing super powers and thus their normal days are now filled with super power battles and other activities. Super power is now the norm and part of their everyday lives. Wow. This is sure going to take the catfight to the next super power level.

Episode 1
When Tomoyo Kanzaki enters the literature club, she is not thrilled that Jurai Andou is acting out one of his chuunibyou about his right hand (I hope there isn’t any sexual innuendo thing here). They make a bet and when Hatoko Kushikawa enters, she takes it seriously and tries to call an ambulance for his pain. Not funny anymore. Andou is forced to apologize. He tries to make it even real next time (with blood?) but turns out loli Chifuyu Himeki walks in and almost scares the sh*t out of her to a point where she is going to cry! Nothing is worse than a crime of making a loli cry. Once club president Sayumi Takanashi is here, Andou continues with his chuunibyou charade. Suddenly light is emitted from his hands. Cool special effects. Wait. This is for real. What the heck is happening? It is getting brighter… Six months later, Andou doesn’t change. The same chuunibyou act. The same unconvinced face by Tomoyo. The same gullible mode by Hatoko. Once the 5 of them are here, they are to initiate their monthly super power check up. In an alternate dimension, we see Chifuyu and Hatoko engaging in a super power battle. They are so focused that neither side is giving up. Andou explains to us of Chifuyu’s power to create anything that comes to mind and Hatoko’s absolute control over all elements. As this match is making no headway, it is Tomoyo’s turn to stop them. The duo find themselves back in the clubroom. Again as Andou explains, Tomoyo’s power is to manipulate time although she can only stop or hasten it. While time was stopped, she carried the duo back. As for Sayumi, her power is to restore anything she touches back to normal, although what constitutes normal is unsure. Andou can’t wait to show his power but the girls are not thrilled. In fact, they don’t even want to see it. I guess this says a lot.

They are put a stop to their activities when student council president, Mirei Kudou walks in to inform them about the complaints of them being noisy. Andou tries to worm his way out by giving his chuunibyou act. The girls thought Kudou won’t buy it but surprisingly she panics upon thinking her identity has been revealed (because Andou lied through his teeth about knowing who she is)! Kudou explains about how she saw their super powers awakening that day and kept a constant watch on them. She challenges to defeat her and if so, she will tell them about her objective. Andou goes first and as usually, some may call it lying through his teeth despite in his eyes he is acting out his chuunibyou stuff (his blazer acts as a seal? Lies!). Once Andou materializes a flame on his right hand, Kudou smiles in victory. Her power is to steal power of others and that is what she did to Andou. He is left in despair thinking of all the good (pathetic) times he had with the flame. Kudou couldn’t be more disappointed. Because this is just the extent of his flame power. That’s all. Yup. Useless. The other girls confirm this. Will the others be fighting her? Tomoyo is smart. She has deduced her power only works when it is shown. Therefore they won’t use their super powers. It will be a physical fight. And Sayumi is black belt in judo and karate… Oh sh*t… Kudou is easily defeated into submission. She reveals all that her super power awakened about a month ago. She was confused and scared. Then she received an anonymous message that the literature club had people with super powers too. She was scared of them as they were a group of 5. She thought they were going to target her and tried to finish them first by starting a fight. Didn’t go to well, huh? In the end, she returned Andou’s power. The quintet discuss the underlying problem of the anonymous sender. Were their powers awakened by somebody else? If they’d only knew someone is watching them right now…

Episode 2
Andou has everyone come up with their own cool nicknames. So we have Hatoko with her colour series, Sayumi with her princess-like names and Chifuyu with her fruit or family relation nicknames. They just don’t sound right, eh? Well, Tomoyo may be the closest in terms of what Andou is expecting. Endless Paradox. Kudou had to interrupt them again but this time she has business with Andou. She is here to reply his love letter and instantly she admits she loves him and would love to go out with him. WTF?! What just happened?! Tomoko is obviously acting jealous that Kudou has to point it out to her. So she would rather go yuri instead of liking this guy? Then outsiders should stay out of it! She shows the letter that was left in her shoebox. Indeed it is written by Andou although it was a letter of gratitude of her power. She over analyzed every line and thus concluded it was a love letter. Therefore it is no surprise she misinterpreted the word Grateful Robber as Grateful Lover. Kudou is ready to call Andou her darling. The loli won’t allow her to take her Andou away. Tomoyo tries to intervene but was told off about her breast size. She becomes mad that she is going to stop time. The moment she does that, Kudou steals her power. Only with Andou’s plea that this love stricken girl returns her power. So we see Kudou acting like his girlfriend. Waiting for him after class, exchanging emails (wow. It has their name in it!) and of course the yandere warning of never to cheat on her with other girls!

It is no surprise that his literature club girls are acting strange when Andou is around. Tomoyo and her jealousy fit, Hatoko giving him the silent treatment and Chifuyu also giving the same and talking through her squirrel stuffed doll. He gets sarcasm and death from Sayumi although she hints that the girls don’t like it when he is showing off his lovey-dovey mood even if Kudou is the one who is misinterpreting all this. They need to do something about this. Andou says that won’t be necessary. Since he started this, he will settle this himself. He goes to apologize and bows his head to Kudou that all this was a misunderstanding. Although Kudou sounds like she is being cool with it, you can see her body reaction. She’s breaking up. Well, you got to give it to her for trying to hold it in this long. She’s handling it pretty well instead of turning yandere or bursting into tears. Andou gets some consoling talk from Tomoyo. She asks about his decision to choose a word like robber. Andou explains about the character count to match theirs. What he wanted was a strong sense of unity. They are a group of 5 as opposed to Kudou who is alone. They overcame hurdles together but she had to conquer them by herself. Therefore this was to show she was one of them, as their friend. But unfortunately it seemed to have an opposite effect. It may look like he is acting his chuunibyou again but he notes even if the world changes, he won’t. Back home, receives an apology message from Kudou and to remain friends. He notices her email address has taken out their name. I guess it’s over for them, huh?

Episode 3
Andou is summoned by his teacher, Shiharu Satomi who is also Chifuyu’s aunt. It’s about his test. Actually his answers are somewhat ambiguous as he wrote using difficult kanji words. But since they aren’t technically wrong, he scores quite high in his test. His friend Shizumu Sagami is also here to retrieve his ‘lover’. His console game. He did have a real girlfriend but Andou is surprised to hear he was dumped. Something about him buying a galge. No wonder. Since the chuunibyou loser and anime freak are arguing, Satomi throws them out of her room. How can she sleep with all that noise? Andou joins his club girls in tennis. Tomoyo thought she could stop time and return the serve but it hits the net and bounces back into her face. Then we have a flaming fireball match between Hatoko and Andou but the former’s fire is hotter so it’s going to hurt. Later Andou shows the girls his record book called Bloody Bible. Tomoyo points out he spelled Bible wrongly as Vivre. Andou realized too late that Sayumi (trying hard to hold her laughter) tricked him into how to spell it. On the way home, Andou realizes his precious Bible isn’t with him and goes back to look for it. Hatoko explains to the other girls how she was often teased with the nickname of Yakitori-chan since her surname can be read like that. She hated it. Till Andou came along and wouldn’t stand for such ‘lame’ nickname and gave her a cooler one: Fire Phoenix. Everyone thought it was lamer than before and stopped calling her that. Hatoko believed he saved her. Sayumi agrees he is a reliable guy despite being an idiot. Because he once told her about her powers never to resurrect the dead or think about it. Chifuyu was told the same thing. Such powers should not exist in their world. He is considerate enough to think about their powers and the effects it could have.

Andou returns to the clubroom only to see this suspicious guy reading his Bible. Kiryuu Heldkaiser Luci First (or Hajime Kiryuu if you prefer his real name) is impressed with Andou’s nickname of Guiltia Sin Jurai. He shows him a similar record book he has called Reverse Crux Record. These guys instantly click. At the cafe where Andou is impressed reading the meaning of his nickname and such, he finds out Hajime is an alumnus of the literature club. A call interrupts them as Andou hears Hajime talking to his ‘comrade’ about some ‘war’ thingy going on. Continuing on the topic of chuunibyou, Hajime has Andou describe what it means to him. Hajime also adds it is a wish for someone to accept you just as you strongly wish to become that someone else. This unresolved paradox of self denial and self affirmation is something like an endless paradox. Sound familiar? Tomoyo comes in surprised to see them. Hajime and Tomoyo know each other. He is her older brother. She hopes he would come back as father isn’t mad anymore but he isn’t going to do so. He leaves and feels their fate will meet again. He tells his other alias: Lucifer’s Strike. Tomoyo talks to Andou that the Endless Paradox nickname was derived from him. They have different surnames because although they share the same father, they have different mothers. Kiryuu is Hajime’s mother’s maiden name and has always gone by it despite living with them since young. She views him as a smart and good person in all aspects from studies and athletics. The kind of person you’d really look to as a role model. But about a year ago, he suddenly felt something is wrong with the world, quit college and left home. Andou hasn’t told him about his real super power yet but is even more amazed with this guy because he casually left him the entire bill… Way to go… Next day, Andou sees Chifuyu waiting outside his school gates. Doesn’t she have her own elementary school to go to? That won’t be necessary. Because she has quit school.

Episode 4
Andou carries Chifuyu to school and she loves being carried on his back. Upon arrival, Chifuyu’s friend, Madoka Kuki is worried but happy to see her. She heard a lot about Andou. Later Andou gets this great idea to use Chifuyu’s power to cosplay. Everyone writes an idea into a suggestion box and randomly picks up a cosplay outfit to wear. So we have Andou the maid (Sayumi can’t stop taking pictures and the only thing missing to go with this is Sagami…), Sayumi in bloomers, Hatoko the sun, bondage gear Chifuyu and Tomoyo in a bikini armour. After taking a group picture, they had to quickly revert back since Satomi is coming in. Well, they’re not wearing other clothes underneath, right? Thank goodness for Tomoyo’s time stopping power… Anyway Satomi is here to see Chifuyu. She heard she left school early due to stomach pains. Chifuyu seems uncomfortable talking about this. Did she lie? Back in Andou’s home, Chifuyu suddenly pops up to tell him that she got into an argument with Kuki because she was told to stay away from Andou. He wants to talk about this in detail tomorrow and she head home for now but it seems Kuki is at her home this instant. It makes things even awkward. She takes up his advice literally that he will come with her and teleports him back. Imagine Kuki’s surprise to see Andou just in his boxers. Definitely looking like a pervert. Kuki wants Chifuyu to stop hanging out with him but she won’t. She can’t tell her the reason either and this upsets Kuki as she leaves. And that scorning look at Andou. This isn’t good.

Next day, Chifuyu tells Andou she wasn’t able to make up with Kuki. I mean, she wouldn’t let her copy her homework, eat her vegetables, got lost along the way… Wow. She relies on her too much. Time to get a replacement?! I didn’t know that was a joke. But she is sad they can’t be friends again. Noticing her melancholy, Andou offers to be her knight and help her make up with Kuki. While Chifuyu talks to Hatoko and gets her squirrel doll fixed, Andou goes to speak to Kuki (who thinks he might be stalking her). He will tell her a greatest secret in exchange she doesn’t tell anyone. He is a lolicon! Oh sh*t! The way he is waxing lyrical this way of life is scaring the hell out of her! It’s doing more trauma than good! What he is trying to say is that Chifuyu accepts him for who he is and just being able to play with her satisfies him. Okay, that sounds creepy too. Chifuyu comes by to hand a bear stuffed doll to her she won at a crane game to make up with her. The girls emotionally reconcile and they’re back to being best friends. This reminds Andou how Satomi first introduced Chifuyu to the club members and they had to babysit her while she attended some meeting. With Andou’s reputation known as the lolicon knight to the girls, Andou asks why Chifuyu wanted to quit school. It was so she could enter high school. She was skipping class to study so she could skip grades. Although it may be hard to keep her powers a secret, she is fine since they are here. She is glad to know in 4 years’ time, she’ll catch up to him. The girls quickly understand what she means so they spell it out to him that she will be the same chuunibyou age with Andou. Oh yes. He will always be there waiting for her no matter how many months or years have passed.

Episode 5
Andou brings a guitar case to the clubroom. Trying to get some attention even though if he can’t play? He calls his guitar Infinity Maria and shows it to the girls. Chifuyu is impressed and wants him to give it to her. Not a chance. She then clones it and has him choose which is the real one. He keeps the one he chooses. A test of his true love for Maria, eh? This is what he has decided. He smashes both of them! He believes this is just a trick by Chifuyu but she mentions it wasn’t. She already told him it was pretty straightforward, right? And so he is left crying that he destroyed his true Maria. Oh my MARIAAAAAAAAAAA!!!!!!! Don’t worry. Sayumi’s power can restore it back, right? After school, Andou realizes he forgot his bag and ditches walking home with Hatoko to return to the clubroom to get it. He witnesses Tomoyo acting out a chuunibyou line! OMFG! Who would’ve guessed?! She’s going to die with embarrassment now that he knows her secret. Even more so when he catches glimpse of a light novel she is writing. Hey, at least Andou makes it clear he isn’t making fun of her (even if it seems like it) but instead is jumping with joy. She is surprised he is quite calm and not laughing at what she is doing. I mean, if he finds people writing light novels funny, then what does that make of him with his chuunibyou? Although Andou won’t exactly support or root for what she is doing, he thinks it is alright as long as she is having fun writing them. Besides, he doesn’t know how deep she is into this and thus the reason he can’t root for her irresponsibly. Tomoyo is touched for him saying such serious things as she reveals how she has failed a couple of times trying to enter contests. She laments her power doesn’t have anything to do that makes her writing better. Well, if it helps her feel better, Andou acts out his usual chuunibyou lines for her.

For the next few scenes, Tomoyo seems to be pretty obsessed with her handphone even during classes. Andou finds out that she is one of the many first round winners for a light novel contest she submitted (under the pen name of Hizumi Yugami). To celebrate this great achievement, he would like to treat her. It will only be them. Can’t pass up this chance, right? Probably this is the first time Tomoyo had a big headache trying to figure what to wear but I think she’ll learn the downside of ‘dating’ a guy like him because when they meet, he didn’t even compliment her ‘normal’ clothes. Nothing. Disappointed? But I think she can’t stop blushing since he even suggested they pretend to be a couple even though it is just to order some couple cake set. Tomoyo wants to ask Andou to accompany her to go buy a book coming out next week but the damn clock had to interrupt and he couldn’t hear what she said. It took a lot of courage for her to say that, you know? Can’t say it again? But she can agree that today was a lot of fun. On the way back, Hatoko is shocked to see them together.

Episode 6
What’s this? Andou and his harem are demons and in some sort of disagreement? He is forced to fight and defeats all of them. Turns out to be a game the girls made for him. Even more surprising is a happy birthday wish at the end of it. All this just for that? Cool! So cool that he is going to cry… A short flashback reveals that 10 months ago, Sayumi suggested eliminating their powers using hers and return to their normal lives. However Andou was against it thinking it would be a waste to do so since they have them. Sayumi falls ill since she worked the hardest on the game. Andou visits her and sees her quite different in glasses. Her sister, Maiya is cheeky enough to tease them as Sayumi is forced to say they aren’t dating and never will (really?). Once she is gone, he looks through the photo album and sees Sayumi was a student council president during middle school. He wonders why she didn’t become one in high school. It seems he might have stepped on a land mine because Sayumi claims she doesn’t feel well and wants him to leave. The flashback continues whereby Sayumi and Andou are in a showdown over their ideals. After setting down the rules, they fight to determine the winner and whether their powers stay or not. Obviously Sayumi overwhelms Andou at every point (faking it or not), giving him no chance. However he doesn’t give up. In present time, Andou gets a message from Sayumi that she won’t be coming to the club due to personal business. She is already well from her cold. He gets a call from Maiya checking things out. Andou tells her he might have said something to upset Sayumi and asks about her stint as student council president at middle school. She was one who sought for perfection and this led to arguments with her fellow body. So the ones who couldn’t keep up drifted away. Andou also remembers Sayumi wanted to become the same in high school but why didn’t she? She talks to Kudou this time but she can only guess it is because she prioritized her bond with her fellow members after discovering her super power. After Andou realizes the student council campaign and election period and process, he realizes it was his fault. Flashback continues and we see Andou doesn’t give up despite all that pain. Even if she gives him time to chant finish his line and use his power, it’s not like it is going to change anything, right? She overpowers him and is going to erase his power. The fun is over.

Once Andou meets Sayumi, he quickly apologizes that had he not been persistent about erasing their powers, she would have become student council president. She clears up the misunderstanding that she doesn’t hate him. When she told him to leave, she really felt drowsy and wanted to rest. As for why she didn’t turn up in the clubroom today is because she went to buy contacts and not because she didn’t want to see him anymore. She even has receipt as proof. This guy was really this worried? Although he may be partly responsible that she couldn’t become student council president, she doesn’t hate him for it and is in fact grateful. The flashback concludes as we see Sayumi couldn’t erase his power. Andou suspected she couldn’t recognize his powerlessness as his natural state. This led him to think about some paradox state that if she said they were not meant to have powers but she had to use them means it would be an unnatural state for her. Can she accept it with all her heart that they weren’t meant to have them? Therefore a person using a power to erase power is like some sort of paradox. He never said it because he wanted to leave hope and the possibility alive that using her powers would return them back to normal. Sayumi admitted she is scared of her powers and can’t trust herself or anyone. She is worried it might be misused or go out of control. Andou suggests using it for fun and will teach her. Sayumi knows despite his assuring talk, he knows better than anyone else how frightening their powers could be. Even if it sounds ridiculous and impossible that he hopes his true power can awaken if ever such incident occurs. Sayumi admitted defeat. And now, she reveals she sought perfection when she was student council president. She valued efficiency and results so much that she forgot to look at her friends. She thought of becoming one in high school to clear away that trauma but realized it was just self satisfaction. She isn’t fit to be one in that case. Andou believes there is no such thing as a perfect person and she is charming the way she is now. With more heartfelt words from her, Andou is impressed and even admits he would even fall for her. Sayumi didn’t like his lack of delicacy and despite teaching her a lot of things, there are some things he needs to be taught. One of them, the heart of a woman.

Episode 7
A flashback shows Hatoko accidentally pressed the emergency button and sends the school into evacuation mode. She is hiding out of fear when Andou finds her. Knowing that she is afraid to get scolded, he will accompany her to apologize so she doesn’t need to look sorry. Another flashback from her during middles school is when Andou lent her some novel to read. From the way she puts her roundabout words, Andou realized she doesn’t understand its contents. Andou’s sister, Machi gives him a rude awakening and wants him to call Hatoko over later to cook for them since their mother will be at an association meeting tonight. In the clubroom, Tomoyo somehow agreed to do some chuunibyou combo move with Andou. Embarrassing. I don’t know what gave him the idea that a new power will awaken if they combine theirs. Anyway, Tomoyo is having a writer’s block and can’t come up with anything so Andou offers to help out. Once he reaches home, Hatoko is already cooking as Tomoyo WhatsApp him for some ideas. Hatoko could tell it is Tomoyo he is communicating with and pesters for details. Andou won’t because she won’t understand. And it is like he said the wrong word because suddenly Hatoko snapped! This is the beginning of a long frustrating yelling at him that she doesn’t understand him. Especially his chuunibyou thing. She doesn’t understand why he likes all those undesirable stuffs like chaos, blood and darkness. Ironically despite not understanding a single term he said, she could list down all the mythological, sci-fi, foreign names, Biblical names he used in his chuunibyou! She doesn’t get all of them! She doesn’t understand why he finds them cool. Don’t act like he knows and understand a lot after doing a little research on the internet. Please talk to her in his own words. She can’t understand it all! She runs out from the house. Shocking. It took a while for Andou to regain his composure and go find her.

He stumbles upon Sagami who saw where she went a while. He could figure this would happen one day because he has always watched how uncomfortable she was with him. They were like a poor fit that it seemed funny. They’ve only been getting along thanks to Hatoko but looks like she paid the price and felt the stress. Andou doesn’t believe she is the type to have stress or concern but Sagami points out the truth that everyone in this world does. This isn’t manga or anime. Andou calls Tomoyo and learns Hatoko isn’t there. He hangs up after telling her she disappeared. He looks for her but couldn’t find her. Tomoyo and Sayumi come to his aid. He explains what happened and that his chuunibyou may have made it worse. He thought it was fun and wanted her to share it but perhaps it was a bother and just forcing herself. Tomoyo slaps him that there is no way it would be that because it would mean her smiles were fake. Was her happiness around her fake too? So get it together. Because he is Guiltia Sin Jurai. Hatoko wanders aimlessly, feeling guilty that she snapped. That’s where she chances upon Hajime. He can tell she is ashamed and guilty for not understanding her childhood friend. The answer to understand those with chuunibyou is simple: Don’t understand them. It might be contradicting and a paradox because those with chuunibyou seek understanding from others but don’t want to be understood just as much. Yes. An endless paradox. Sounds familiar? Therefore someone who can’t understand chuunibyou is important and necessary for a guy like him to live as himself. He asks what happiness is for people. She says love but he has a simpler answer: To be chosen. When his pals arrive, Hatoko starts to feel drowsy and when she looks into his eyes, she passes out. Andou and the duo get ready to continue searching for Hatoko. But looking blindly won’t help so Sayumi is going to use her next stage power.

Episode 8
Taking place a few weeks back, Hajime is in a power fight with some guy. Of course he never gave him a chance and crushes him by sucking him into some portal. Seems that guy loses his memory of what happened and as explained, there is some Fairy War going on and this little fairy, Reatier is making humans fight as part of the fairy’s entertainment. One of the rules of this war is that if you are one of the final 8 from the thousand of participants, your wish will be granted. However that guy Hajime just fought wasn’t registered and they think this guy called F is trying to overproduce power users for reasons unknown. Reatier soon calls the rest of Hajime’s members with plans to infiltrate and crush F’s base because it is rumoured F has a trump card, somebody with God-like powers that nobody could beat. They believe if this is the case, somebody is trying to end the war. However the committee hasn’t decided yet. Hajime can smell something is wrong. Because why would Reatier tell them something in which the committee hasn’t decided yet? Because after learning this, it would be highly likely that Hajime would go crush F. He theorize that F’s ringleader is part of the original committee but betrayed them and trying to end the war. Therefore if Reatier’s plan is to crush F, it would work well in her favour. Hajime doesn’t mind doing it but he doesn’t like how he is being manipulated. Later, Reatier sees one of Hajime’s members, Hitomi Saitou (because she has a crush on Hajime although she flat out denies it) about the committee’s decision to crush F. The rest are summoned to get the job done. This is when Reatier called Hajime who was with Andou at the cafe telling him about the committee and war. Hajime will show them who is boss. Hitomi and co barge into F’s base and make steady headway. When they reach to the trump card known as System, Aki Natsu can read her God-like powers as she falls into despair thinking there is now way to beat this loli. System is about to crush Hitomi when Hajime saves the day. Everyone is shocked to learn System is now part of their group. Hajime fought her at first but couldn’t get serious after seeing how cute she is. He offered her to be part of the team for some candy. Really. That’s it. He gives the orders to crush ever last member of F. He goes home to rest and Hitomi could tell his gut injury but he won’t make her say it to the rest.

A few weeks later, Hajime contracted some eye disease for sleeping with his coloured contacts. He remembers a girl from Andou’s group who can revert things back to normal. Hitomi thought he didn’t want them to get involved but he points out that is where her memory scrambling comes in handy. So this is the scene where Hatoko got knocked out. Unfortunately of course, they got the wrong girl and they start pointing fingers. Of course the biggest one to blame is Hajime… The literature club members initiate their usual meeting and take attendance. Since Hatoko is not here, this is not their usual or regular club so she uses her power to revert this situation back to normal! In that instant, Hatoko vanishes from Hitomi’s room and is appears in the clubroom. She wakes up still in a daze, not remembering clearly but generally she still remembers seeing Hajime’s pals. Then Andou and Hatoko incessantly start apologizing to each other but Tomoyo breaks this apologizing spree by announcing she is trying to become a light novel author. She thought of keeping it a secret till she produced some results. She explains Andou found out earlier and was just trying to give her some ideas. Andou is grateful and happy for Hatoko. He begins acting his chuunibyou ways and hopes Hatoko could walk with him as he needs companions. Okay. She touches his hand and finds it warm. Not because of his flame or anything. They’re naturally warm. Chifuyu makes sure he puts his hand to good use by making him open a bag of chips. Can’t he just use a scissors? He tries too hard and suddenly feels his true power has awakened. He tries to show off something cool but it backfires. Sounds painful…

Episode 9
Tomoyo hands her work to Andou for his opinion. This makes Andou remember there was a time he wanted to quit this chuunibyou thing but a certain someone whom he couldn’t remember made him go on. From that vague description of a girl in silver wig and sunglasses, this causes Tomoyo to fluster and run away. Could it be? OMG. Don’t tell me it’s her! Yanagi Akutagawa is looking through the videos and saw an F member escaped. Hajime may get mad about this. So how? Delete the video! Don’t let him know! While Andou is in one of his usual antics, he jokes about keeping himself awake with his new power but this causes the girls to be seriously worried and force him never to use it. Then they talk about their test results. Chifuyu’s mood determines her score because it is either she gets a perfect 100 or a complete 0. Hatoko may rank higher than Andou but Tomoyo is dumbfounded Andou ranks way much higher than her! She couldn’t accept Andou is better than her and continues studying in hopes to beat him for the finals. Hatoko helps her with it. By the way, Kudou ranks first followed by Sayumi. After the tests (something hinting that Tomoyo still couldn’t beat Andou), Sayumi stumbles upon some old application file of Andou. Tomoyo couldn’t help laugh her ass off because it states his weak point is having no emotions. This has Chifuyu ask him if he has so because in that case does he like her? Of course. She points out he is a liar because it means he has emotions then. Later Chifuyu asks Andou some question about curry, rice and liquid but what she is getting at is that she hopes he will take her to the pool for the summer vacation. They make a promise for it.

In class, Chifuyu talks to Kuki that she has a problem. Her chest hurts and feels tight. Her face gets warm and she spaces out. All this only happens with Andou around. Based on the symptoms she describes, Kuki suddenly realize the illness she has. Yeah. She’s pretty much in love instead of having arrhythmia. So don’t worry, you’re not going to die of some illness. Sayumi is in the toilet cleaning her glasses when Sagami doesn’t think she should wear them. What the hell is this guy doing in a girl’s toilet?! Get out! Sagami points out that Sayumi is in love with Andou. He knows she suggested making a game for him so that no one could get the jump in confessing to him. However he is here to help her. He wants to see her get hooked up with Andou and not anybody else. Viewing himself as a reader, because it would be interesting to see the least popular heroine win his heart in this twisted love comedy. So take up his offer and he will turn her into a main heroine. Hatoko asks Tomoyo if she likes anybody. Nobody of course. Really? Hatoko then says she loves Andou. She really, really, really loves him. She wants to date him, hold his hand, etc. She is telling her all this because Tomoyo is the person who understands him the most while herself the least. For this reason she needed to tell her while she had the chance. She wants to be Andou’s chosen one. Therefore she will ask again. Is there anybody Tomoyo likes?

Episode 10
Compounding Tomoyo’s problem is her failure to enter the next round of the light novel contest. Andou meets Chifuyu and Kuki to head to the pool. Kuki vows not to let that lolicon stay closer to her best friend and plans to destroy his image. First she tries to make him look like a miser but she ends up eating all the stuffs he bought. How deep is his pocket anyway? Next, she tries to paint him a loser by playing a prank on a macho man (so that Andou will be scared sh*t to save her). However she starts feeling scared and intimidated by his size. That is when Andou comes to her rescue. Finally there is this poolside quiz. She is going to make Andou look dumb. At first things are going as planned as Chifuyu is the one answering the questions. When it comes to the last question, it is some tough science question that everybody knows the host doesn’t want the contestant to win the grand car prize. However Andou shows his intelligence by putting up the correct answer! The host won’t give up and continues with a series of super tough questions. He got it all correct! He’s doomed. Andou then takes the whale doll prize instead because this is what Chifuyu wants. So play fair next time, okay? Besides, Andou doesn’t need the car. He already won the grand prize: Their smiles. Holy cow! Did Kuki just start to think how cool he is?! Could it be that she is starting to fall for him?! No way man! She thinks Andou is targeting her since she is a loli too. She thought he was serious about her but turns out it was to ask her to continue to be Chifuyu’s friend. Andou knows that once they graduate, everyone will go their own ways. He doesn’t think he can be by Chifuyu’s side forever but would like Kuki to be to one. Of course. She is her best friend.

Andou meets up with Sayumi this time for their outing. Guess where? Not the pool again?! Of course this is a setup by Sagami that Sayumi agreed to go along. Although she wanted to do things her way, she is forced to abide his rules because he switched her swimsuit and must be careful not to get it wet or else it will turn invisible. So we see Sayumi trying so hard to avoid water. She’s faster than the speed of light in avoiding all the splashes. When she eventually couldn’t avoid, she starts getting embarrassed and doesn’t want him to look. She realizes she has been had when her swimsuit didn’t change. She confronts Sagami (who is laughing like mad) and punches him! She is through being his puppet for today. He warns she will finish last in love and forever lose but Sayumi would rather play fair and not devalue herself to win. Realizing he has failed, he decides to check on some super power battle and makes call to a former F member. Sayumi returns to Andou and he is relieved that she is back to her normal self as he could tell she was acting strange earlier on. She too notes she likes him to way he is now. Later that night, Tomoyo plans to ask Andou out. Guess where? That same pool again? Yeah. She has the tickets. She calls him and learns he will be away on a family trip for a day. However this is as far as she could go. No invitation to the pool? Not even telling him about her contest result?

Episode 11
The girl in silver wig and sunglasses has a problem fixing her bicycle. Andou happened to pass by and help fix it. Since she is acting her chuunibyou ways, Andou tells her to stop it or she’ll regret one day with embarrassment. This makes her ram him with her bicycle as they argue about the existence of fiction. He finally gives in when she proves it exists: In your heart. And of course you know, this girl is confirmed as Tomoyo in disguise. Andou is on a family vacation with Hatoko. She is trying to do all the things listed in the magazine to get Andou to like her. At least that is what it says. From smiling to acting clumsy to putting lotion on her back and chasing her on the shore lines. Well, so far so good. Finally she must find an isolated end of the beach and gently cuddly up to him and confess. Can she do it? Maybe not. She got dizzy and passes out. That night she talks to Andou about things and feels she has been mean to Tomoyo. She is also worried that once they graduate, they’ll go their different ways and won’t be able to talk as often like now. Will they still be friends? He reminds her there was a time during middle school where he stood outside her house all day. It was raining. He is very grateful to have her by his side. She saved him. Therefore she isn’t just an ordinary friend. She is always someone special. Even if they’re adults, this fact will not change. Meanwhile Tomoyo is alone at the pool. Feels pathetic. No fun.

Back home, Tomoyo must be sleeping trying to write her novel when she gets a wakeup call from Andou to meet at the festivals. He compliments her yukata and they go play at the shooting gallery in which she won hands down. Then he leads her to some isolated place. Gulp. Something going to happen? He asks if she has anything to say to him because he heard from Hatoko things and was wondering if anything happened between them. If it is his fault he will apologize. Tomoyo tells him her failure to reach the next round of the light novel competition. He thanks her instead but won’t console or encourage her because she is the one who worked hardest on this so he doesn’t want to give half hearted consolation. That hard work and frustration belongs to her alone. You start feeling something in your heart, girl? The fireworks interrupts their pace and as Tomoyo thinks back of the times being with him, she is now certain that she is in love with him. Meanwhile somebody is at Kudou’s house. The moment she opens the door, she got owned. Next day, all the literature club members seemed to be called to the clubroom by her. Kudou suddenly barges in citing the pain in her hand. But the moment Hatoko unleashes her power, it seems it is all a feign by Kudou to just steal her power. Is Hatoko going to be done in by her own flames?

Episode 12
Chifuyu projects a barrier but Kudou steals it. Luckily Tomoyo stops time and brings her friends away. I know it is tough carrying all 4 of them but from where she brings them it looks like a very far place. Couldn’t she have brought them safe somewhere nearer? So for now they discuss their next move at the karaoke joint (there’s no other place, believe me). They think Kudou is possessed or her mind manipulated since she looks the same and has her abilities. The best way as Andou suggests is to ask her directly. He calls but Kudou will not comment. He suggests meeting up at the literature club in an hour. Kudou seems to be talking with Sagami. She is appalled that people with super powers are unaware of the Fairy War. But as part of the deal if she defeats Andou and his girls alone, she gets to join their team since she is an ex-member of F. The girls are against Andou’s strategy of using that move. They know it is risky but what else choice do they have? Andou goes to see Kudou alone and she beats him up and threatens to kill him if he doesn’t call the girls here. However Andou knows she won’t kill him. As he has told the girls to hide, killing him means she will lose her only lead to find them and not fulfil her objective. He has more value alive. She shoots an arrow to his leg and snaps a picture to send to Sayumi. Andou says it won’t work because he told her not to come if such happens. But will that truly happen? Will she abandon him? Since the time is about right, Andou goes into his chuunibyou mode and unleashes his next level of flame on his right hand. He makes it sound that it has evolved into something good so Kudou steals it only to find it burns like hell and cannot be put out! Flashback reveals when Andou first materialized it, nothing can put it out. Not even Hatoko’s freezing elements. To save him, Sayumi brought a guillotine and with Chifuyu’s portal power suggests that it cut off that flaming arm and sending it to another dimension before restoring his arm back to its normal state. Sayumi made him promise never to use this power again. Kudou is beginning to panic as the flames won’t go away. Andou slaps her and wants her to believe in him. At the right moment, the same guillotine and portal move is done on them. Their hands are healed and the girls are crying out of fear and relief. The former F member is furious this has happened and vows to win the next time. However Hajime isn’t impressed in this and sends her into a portal. He warns Sagami never to do this again. Because it is best to save the fun for the last.

Sayumi talks to Kudou who was really under the manipulation of that former F member. She wonders why Andou went so far to risk his life to save her. Simple. He considers all those with super power as his friend and he would never abandon a friend. Sayumi knows his plan is reckless and might not work the second time. However if a similar situation is forced upon them, she will still support Andou’s decision. Hatoko and Tomoyo talk. The latter mentioning going to a bookstore with Andou. Hatoko notes she saw them once together and thought they were a perfect fit. Even though they fight, that is the reason why they get along well. It is a reason why she panicked when she saw them. She thought he was going to leave her. Although Tomoyo is special to Andou, Hatoko still loves him and wants him to choose her. Tomoyo who couldn’t her question before now could. She loves Andou. So both won’t lose to him? Wow. They’re saying that with a smile. Andou hangs out with Chifuyu. He is in a dilemma if she should stay with them because of the dangers they faced but at the same time he would like her to be with them as much as possible. She will stay with him to protect him. Andou has her promise even if it is to protect someone, never use super powers to hurt others. He believes super powers are not meant for that or even bring happiness. It is just meant to be cool and that is all they need to be. His chuunibyou act earns the wrath of Tomoyo because it’s embarrassing looking at him doing such stuffs in public. The pot calling the kettle black?

My Super Power Harem
Well, it was rather okay considering there were some funny moments, romantic moments (if you can call those) and super power battle moments. Not the perfect in the genre but at least it didn’t suck. Of course the biggest thing left hanging is about the Fairy War and from the looks of it, isn’t going to be over by a long shot and from the way Andou and his girls are painted, they possess the best super powers ever. Even better than unleashing cheat codes. It may answer to the several mysteries surrounding their super powers and how they were chosen to wield it but I guess that is reserved for another time. I have this thought that this Fairy War thingy was a very big elaborated and sophisticated imagination of the chuunibyou of all those involved. But it looks real. Because if it was, I think I’ll be disappointed. A big slap in the face. This entire conflict is just some delusion? No way. With the existence of pint size fairies like Reatier, it is a reason why this super power and secret war is all the more real instead of just imaginations in one’s head.

Ironically the super powers are not highlighted or shown very frequently. At least not for the middle part of the series. Just sparingly. So much so you might think that this is an ordinary high school romance comedy harem series. It’s like as though the initial episodes are to introduce us the setting and then the final episode to remind us that this setting is still on. So if you are hoping to see super power battles or the use of it in their daily lives, you would be disappointed. In the end, the super powers are just like ‘accessories’ and whether they have it or not, personally I feel that they do not make too much of an impact in the overall storyline because like I said, it feels like an ordinary high school romance comedy harem. Because something tells me if you are to see them spamming the use of super powers in every episode, that will be just boring and overdoing it. What else can you use super power effects for? Comedy purpose? How much exaggerated and over the top can that get you? And super powers are meant only to look cool? Then I guess Superman and the likes are just big show-offs, huh?

Of course this is because we are unfamiliar with the Fairy War so it isn’t fair to say that their super powers were just trolling and luring us to watch this show with some sort of super twist and revelation. As far as we have seen, Andou and the girls do not have the slightest clue about the Fairy War which I have mentioned may be pivotal to the entire story and setting of this series. Definitely it would be interesting to see if they ever get involved (which I have a feeling they eventually would). But even if this war was not featured and taken out of this anime, I think the story for this season will still get by. We’re here for Andou and his girls, right?

Character wise, although not very deep (at least for the main characters), there are enough obvious screen time dedicated for Andou and the girls. Even one on one focus just to satisfy fans of certain pairings and somehow making it look like a dating simulation. Haha. You learn a bit of their past and their family but that is about it. Therefore the romance and harem factor feels a bit lacking. Maybe it is just me having some sort of expectations but at the end of the day, despite we all know the literature club girls do have a crush on Andou, the group doesn’t feel like a harem and more like friends hanging out in an extra curriculum activity. Feels like a distraction to the Fairy War that is going on behind the scenes.

Andou as the main character is a very flawed one thanks to his chuunibyou. In fact, you could say that this is what defines him. However at times he could pull off some of the most amazing quotes and lines that are neither supporting nor mocking you, it just makes you feel like you want to nod your head and agree to what he says. He might act like a kid but beneath all that silly exterior is a guy who treasures friendship more than anything else in this world. Is it no surprise that why the girls love him. Even Kudou the ‘outsider’ also once fell in love with him and I think she still is. So it was quite surprising when suddenly Kudou becomes the first character to become his (temporary) girlfriend as early as the second episode! I thought she would be part of the main group (since she also appears in the ending credits animation along with the other girls) but I guess 4 is already more than enough to handle. Because I figure it is wise of him to stay as friends with all of them now. Imagine if they break up and it turns ugly… Remember that Hollywood show My Super Ex-Girlfriend? Yeah. Imagine that happening. All hell breaks loose.

Hatoko’s shocking rage barrage is the highlight and perhaps the most ‘memorable’ scene of the entire series. Everyone who has watched this anime will definitely remember this scene and talk about it. Never would it cross in your mind that this gentle and nice girl would actually snap like that. It was like as if it was a wakeup call and a turning point of the series. And then all that craziness died down in the next episode and things return to normal. It just feels anti-climaxing. Because normally when somebody snaps at you like that, it would be awkward to be with that person for some time. But here they return to their normal friendship so fast like as though it never happened. Like as though it was all a figment of one’s imagination. A bit unrealistic. But this is definitely the scene of the series. All she wanted was to understand him but eventually even she couldn’t, the most important thing is that she accepts him for who he is. And that itself is already a step closer in understanding him. Doesn’t that sound like a paradox?

The rest of the girls in the literature club are okay too. They have varied personalities like Tomoyo’s slightly brash nature, Sayumi’s cool beauty and level-headed ways and Chifuyu the expressionless loli. There is more than meets the eye to Hajime and Sagami. They are the most mysterious characters as far as this season is concerned. Hajime is a cool character and powerful. You don’t mess with this guy. He knows what he is doing although his approach to it may be unconventional. His team feels insignificant in this season and are just touched on since the Fairy War isn’t anything major. It just feels like for introduction purposes. Sagami on the other hand isn’t just some silly anime freak and his presence is all the more mysterious. He has this sinister and scheming looks and from what we can see his plan with Sayumi, he just wants to find something interesting to watch. I don’t know if it is a distraction from the Fairy War or something that has to do with it but yet again, this war I feel is an event that would connect the dots. You can’t tell if he is friend or foe but my guts tell me he is the kind that can cross over to the other side if the terms favour him. So not to be discounted out and I am sure his path and Andou’s will clash.

Unlike that other chuunibyou series, this one at least has a little decent explanation about the chuunibyou syndrome of why someone acts so. Even if some of Hajime’s clarification is a bit hard for me to understand the first time, nevertheless it is not something to be taken lightly off. People who want attention to be understood just enough instead of being fully understood. Because there is some sort of coolness and attraction in being a dark and mysterious type, no? Therefore should chuunibyou be the new trend and normality of today’s society or a growing case of disturbed and disillusioned people never wanting to accept reality. But what is reality by the way? How do you define what is reality and what isn’t? Therefore the nameless assassin… STOP! STOP! STOOOOOOOOOPPPPPPPPP!!!!!!

Art and drawing feels pretty standard and nothing to shout about, which is pretty okay for an anime genre like this. As long as the girls look cute enough, there is nothing you should complain. Or is there? The special effects when the super powers are released are nothing flashy. Especially with Andou’s dark flame thingy, looks cool at first but after a while, you realize that it might be one of the most boring looking dark flames materializing on one’s hand ever. Note that this anime is produced by Trigger whose other very notable work is the insane and crazy Kill La Kill.

Saori Hayami I suppose is making her presence felt currently in the anime world since I have been hearing her a lot lately in many animes that I have watched. So as Hatoko, she fits her character well and I thought it was going to be the usual Saori Hayami until she started that shocking snapping holler. She was so perfect, yet so scary. I don’t think I can ever snap this long even if I am so mad. So kudos to her for that very amazing screamer. Other casts include Nobuhiko Okamoto as Andou (Accelerator in To Aru Majutsu No Index), Haruka Yamazaki as Tomoyo (Ruka in Hayate No Gotoku), Nanami Yamashita as Chifuyu (Nanami in Wake Up, Girls!), Risa Taneda as Sayumi (Mirai in Kyoukai No Kanata), Kaori Fukuhara as Kudou (Tsukasa in Lucky Star), Takuma Terashima as Hajime (Shiroe in Log Horizon), Yoshimasa Hosoya as Sagami (Kiryuu in Isshuukan Friends), Kaori Nazuka as Satomi (Nunnally in Code Geass), Emiri Katou as Kuki (Kyuubey in Mahou Shoujo Madoka Magica), Ayumi Fujiwara as Hitomi (Misaki in Kaichou Wa Maid-sama) and Sayumi Hara as Reatier (Rhythm in Pretty Rhythm Aurora Dream).

The opening theme is Overlappers by Qverktett, a fancy group name (how the heck do you pronounce it anyway?) for the quartet girls of the literature club. Sounds okay. Sounds generic. Sounds like a girl group anime pop. Read: Not that appealing enough to catch my attention. Because honestly I thought some parts of the song sounded a little weird even though that is how it is supposed to sound. The ending theme is You Gotta Love Me by Kato*Fuku sounds more like rock pop. Personally it sounds better than the opening theme although still not appealing enough for me to start humming in my head. The Game of Life that they are playing in the ending credits animation, I have a feeling it symbolizes how their life is going. As narrated by Tomoyo in the final scenes: Living life to the fullest as their usual days.

Overall, this anime has its strengths and weaknesses but still worth the entertainment value. A harem with super powers doesn’t sound like a bad idea but you might feel ‘cheated’ realizing that the romance part doesn’t employ the super power element. And with a certain war tugging in the background to make some of us scratch our heads of its relevancy in this series, you might wonder if this is going to turn out into a super power battle or super power romance anime. But if you want to watch this, just stay for the comedy and little romance stuffs. I mean, even if you have super powers, that doesn’t mean you cannot fall in love anymore, right? You are still a human being underneath regardless of all that power. Unless you’re an idol, then there is nothing more to be said.