The Student Council Presidential Election is underway and
Hyakkou Academy has become a battlefield of gambling. As members of the Momobami Clan decimate the
competition, their power begins to overwhelm not only Kirari Momobami, who is
fighting to maintain her power, but even Yumeko Jabami, who finds herself in a
tight spot after being poisoned. But
theyre not the only ones with something on the line. Mary Satome teams up with Ryota Suzui for a
last ditch effort to save Yumeko’s life with surprising results. And Hyakkou Idol Yumemi Yumemite faces off
with the actress who inspires her: the beautiful Natari Kawaru, who is also
Sumika Warakubami of the Momobami Clan.
Everything is on the line and no one intends to lose. So what happens when the pressure becomes too
much for some to handle?
While I think things took a step backwards in overall
intensity, the second week of Kakegurui XX traded death defying odds for a more
personal touch. Yumeko was either
incapacitated or playing a supporting role while those who have supported her
got to step into the spotlight and prove they can be just as crazy and
unpredictable as the Gambling Queen herself.
It's kind of hard to choose who stole the show more this
week. Was it Mary stepping in to save
Yumeko, for her own personal gain or because she cares? Was it Yumemi, who got to face her own
limitations and found she still can rise above them? Or is it Runa Yomozuki, the doggie hoody
sporting (I think?) Council member overseeing most of the entire Election as an
“impartial observer”? I’ve gotta say
that I really liked Runa, who was a character I found truly terrifying in
Season One, I think I even called her the “Evil Umaru-Chan” because of her
penchant for video games and sweets and the aforementioned animal hoodie. She still has that Kakegurui approved twisted
closeup that instills nothing but fear and an occasional chuckle (cause let’s
face it some of those extreme closeups are so over the top you cant help but
laugh at the absurdity). But Runa is
having a blast monitoring the whole election.
Her stand out moment had to be when she was forced to taste test a super
spicy Death Macaroon that even she couldn’t handle. I’m hoping she continues to play the role of
mediator and monitor well the rest of the season.
How about Mary though, declaring she’s gonna go for it
and become the next Student Council President.
Mary may look proud and tough most of the time, but I do believe she has
a good heart. She did step in to save
Yumeko without any hesitation, especially when she looked into the true scope
of the lows Miri Youbami and Miyo Inbami.
I particularly liked how Mary reminded the wicked pair that, “This is
Hyakkou Academy. You Outsiders will
never stand a chance against us when we play.”
If that’s not a declaration of war against the somewhat invader like
Momobami Clan, I don’t know what is.
What interests me more is one of the core reasons for Mary wanting to
really step up to the stage: Yumeko.
Though Yumeko knew Mary would win and have a good time in the process,
Mary truly worries about Yumeko’s gambling addiction and how even in the face
of death it never bothered her that the stakes had been raised so high. Personally, I don’t think Yumeko wants the
presidency herself because she loves gambling with Kirari too much. Would she secede the position to someone else
if she did win, maybe even to Mary? It’s
still too early to make such guesses but I think Mary is in it to win it if
only to keep Yumeko and Hyakkou safe from one another on different terms. Whatever the case, im sure the shippers went
crazy when Mary made a whispered confession to Yumeko centimeters over the
literal sleeping beautys lips.
The biggest chunk of this weeks set fell to returning
idol master Yumemi and I was excited to see her and Yumeko team up again for
another performance. Sadly, we only got
to see the tail end, which kind of sucked.
Yes I know that history shouldn’t repeat itself, especially in a show as
unpredictable as Kakegurui. But still,
the first act of the idol show without their performance was lacking in
enjoyment. However, things picked up in
the second act of the event, especially after Kawaru sang the best damn version
of “Amazing Grace” I think ive ever heard in my life. Once the spotlight focused on Yumemi
beginning to doubt she could ever reach Kawaru’s level, things got better and I
was truly wondering if Yumemi was either being honest with her doubts or giving
the best damn performance of her life to fool Kawaru. Whatever the case, Yumeko’s dark side
creeping in when Yumemi expressed her desire to lose was hilarious. It would suck to see these two lose a
friendship after all they went through to get there in Season One. But thankfully, that wasn’t the case as
Kawaru’s honesty and hearing the eternal support of her best friend and fans
pulled off a miracle victory. Kawaru’s
respect was earned and it looks like Yumeko’s admiration of Yumemi is
intact. There was drama, there were a
lot of tears and yet things still felt just as intense as Yumeko getting
poisoned or being in danger of losing a finger…damn this show is still so good.
There are still a fair few questions lingering at the
halfway mark of Kakegurui XX. What kind
of move does Mary have in mind to advance her position, especially now that
Kirari’s twin sister, Ririka, has thrown in her support for her? Will Kirari be able to snatch back her
presidency from her bloodthirsty clan members or is it possible she could be
overwhelmed by their combined might? And
what role does clan outcast Rei Batsubami have to play in all of this? I feel like this season should be more than
12 episodes long, which is funny because I thought the same of Season One. Just like Season One, however, XX continues to
up the stakes for Yumeko and company in many unexpected ways and could still
end up moving things towards an entertaining conclusion. Guess we’ll find out when things continue
next week.
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