Kaguya-sama: Love is War Season 2

Episode 9

This week, Kaguya-sama: Love is War changes things up a bit by taking a small break from the two leads and devoting two-thirds of its runtime to supporting characters. Although viewers have become well-acquainted with the show's supporting cast, we seldom get a chance to see how they function outside of the usual setting and away from Kaguya and Miyuki. While the vast majority of the series' humor stems the main duo's ongoing conflict, it's nice to get the occasional reminder that Kaguya-sama's world is populated by other characters who are funny and fascinating in their own right.

The first segment finds Miko, who's considering a departure from the student council, unloading her anxieties on Kobachi. From Miko's perspective, she's a tragic heroine, and the student council is made up of oppressive bullies and depraved perverts (with the exception of Chika, of course). However, since her friend has an overactive imagination and is prone to jumping to conclusions, Kobachi posits that Miko has simply misinterpreted the gang's words and actions, prompting Miko to carefully reflect upon her recollections of recent events. After thinking things through, Miko once again allows her imagination to run wild and concludes that Kaguya is the primary cause of all the student council's chaos and is hellbent on wresting the presidency from Miyuki — effectively replacing one misguided train of thought with another. Newly enlightened, Miko goes on the offensive against the unsuspecting vice president, only to find herself on the losing end of the episode's battle when Kaguya reacts unexpectedly to Miko demanding to know how she feels about Miyuki.

Miko's extended fantasy sequence and knack for exaggeration demonstrate that she's a much better fit for the student council than she thinks. She's partial to flights of fancy and has a very specific plan for how things should be — but she's not necessarily able to execute said plan to her liking. Still, it's strange that she's been established as a stickler for the rules when her deepest desire seems to involve revolutionizing a strict, out-of-touch student council and becoming the student body's hero. Her desire for adoration fits well with her character, but standing by her principles seemed to be central to her personality as well. Perhaps she thinks she knows the ideal level of discipline, and the student council of her fantasies have simply become too strict — which, again, is odd, considering her belief that the gang has no respect for the rules.

Picking up from the conclusion of last week's installment, the second segment finds Kaguya unable to face Miyuki following her bout of lovesickness. To help make herself less nervous in his presence, Kaguya develops a calming ritual that involves touching her left cheek with her right hand. However, when Miyuki grabs her right hand and insists that she explain why she's been so evasive, Kaguya is unable to use her new ace in the hole. More flustered than ever, Kaguya violently throws Miyuki to the ground, thereby freeing her hand and enabling her to perform her ritual. Unfortunately, her calmness quickly dissipates when she realizes how badly she's injured Miyuki, though it may have been virtual reality, judging by the brief scene of her in VR goggles at the end.

Fast-paced and laden with winning gags, this segment is the sole portion of episode 9 that centers on Kaguya and Miyuki, and it truly makes the most of its brief runtime. Presenting Kaguya's confrontation with Miyuki as a fighting game is both a funny visual choice and accurate portrayal of ballooning embarrassment and out-of-control emotions. It's also surprisingly hard to take sides this time around, as neither party is trying to coax a confession out of the other or engaging in emotional blackmail. Both Kaguya's desire to avoid embarrassing herself and Miyuki's concern for Kaguya's wellbeing are malice-free, which makes for an interesting change of pace. Kaguya achieving mental clarity in Miyuki's presence — but only for a few seconds — serves as yet another darkly comic reminder that true victories are rare in this series.

In this week's final story, Ishigami decides to come out of his shell and join Shuchiin's cheerleading squad in the hope of becoming a “normie.” However, after seeing how gung-ho and extroverted the rest of the squad is, he quickly comes to regret this decision. For the school's upcoming sports meet, the squad decides that all male members will wear female uniforms, and all female members will wear male uniforms. While the prospect of borrowing a uniform from one of the girls on the student council fills Ishigami with dread, Kaguya proves surprisingly sympathetic and volunteers the use of one of hers. (Although she intentionally botches his makeup job in response to him claiming that the chest area is too tight.) Energized by Kaguya's support, Ishigami decides to honor his commitment to the cheerleading squad, and the narrator promises that his story will continue next week.

This story provides us with our first extended look at Ishigami on his own, giving us a chance to see how he interacts with peers outside of the student council. In spite of his usual antisocial behavior and judgmental observations, we learn that he harbors a genuine desire to grow as a person and step outside of his comfort zone. Having unfairly looked down on the cheerleading squad in this past, he wishes to right this wrong and possibly become a better-rounded person in the process. The segment also shines a light on the evolving relationship between Kaguya and Ishigami. Although he still claims to be terrified of her, Ishigami is receptive to Kaguya's help and is quick to confide in her. For Kaguya's part, she no longer appears to regard Ishigami with the same level of disdain she had for him at the outset and doesn't hesitate to provide assistance after being briefed on the situation. Among this segment's stand-out jokes are Miyuki becoming jealous by the level of physical contact between Kaguya and Ishigami, and Miko reacting to the sight of Ishigami in a dress with detached indifference instead of her usual panic.

This week's Kaguya-sama: Love is War starts strong and manages to entertain throughout. Miko shows that she's more at home on the chaotically dysfunctional student council than she might think, Kaguya continues to tackle the physical symptoms of her lovesickness, and Ishigami makes baby steps towards self-improvement. For a series whose central gimmick largely depends on the status quo being upheld, this episode contains a fair amount of character development.

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Kaguya-sama: Love is War Season 2 is currently streaming on Funimation.

Amy is an author who has loved anime for over two decades.