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My Dress-Up Darling
Episode 12

by MrAJCosplay/Cartoon Cipher,

How would you rate episode 12 of
My Dress-Up Darling ?
Community score: 4.7

Because the fanservice and the cosplay insights are oftentimes My Dress-Up Darling's biggest attention grabbers – as well as being some of the primary elements the show is marketed on – I was genuinely shocked when it decided to end on a note that embraces neither of those things. Instead, this episode cements My Dress-Up Darling as a romance about two characters coming into their own all along, and while I think the show could have definitely made this more of a focus earlier on, it still makes for one of the best season finales one could hope for.

In terms of narrative progression, there's not a lot that goes on in this episode. We don't really see a lot of the other characters we got introduced to outside of the main duo, and cosplay is barely even mentioned aside from one or two small conversation points (my favorite is the scene towards the beginning where Gojo isn't affected by a horror movie because he's focusing so hard on things like the makeup and costume design). This is just an episode about Gojo and Kitagawa living out the last days of their summer break, spending time together and fortifying the foundation of their relationship that has been slowly building up to this point. We get scenes of Kitagawa getting in over her head and needing to rely on Gojo to help keep her steady, and it's clear that Gojo appreciates Kitagawa for taking him out to experience things that he never really got the chance to. It's not like there was really anything stopping him from experiencing these things on his own, but this boy had grown to be so accepting of his loneliness due to his childhood trauma that he probably just came to his own conclusion that he could never be a part of social gatherings like that. So Kitagawa not only going with him to the festival but also casually bringing up that they will do more things together next year means the world to him, and those quiet moments where he's just staring off into the scenery or appreciating the beautiful ball of energy that steamrolled into his life genuinely moved me.

A couple reviews ago I mentioned how I almost didn't want these two to get together too quickly despite Kitagawa realizing her feelings for Gojo early on, as I think the characters needed to come to terms with how they view themselves before they would be ready to commit to something like a romantic relationship. This episode was definitely a step in that direction as Gojo begins to further appreciate and accept the fact that he does not need to be alone anymore while Kitagawa continues to rely on Gojo as a source of support and understanding. I love these two characters and I look forward to the day when I might be able to see them come together as equals. Despite all of the unabashed horniness and some questionable and borderline problematic practices the show touches upon, you will never convince me that My Dress Up Darling doesn't have a heart. It might take some time to get it, and some might feel like it's not worth trying to find in the first place, but that heart was strong enough to carry me all the way to the end of the show and also consider it one of the better slice of life anime that I've seen in a bit.

Rating:

My Dress-Up Darling is currently streaming on Crunchyroll and Funimation.


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