Rascal Does Not Dream of Santa Claus

Episode 8

This episode, like the other first episodes in each arc so far this season, is an info dump more than anything else. The writing on this show is tight enough that we can be sure that there are few, if any, extraneous details floating about. While you might think that this would give us a good chance at figuring out what is going on, there is an issue preventing us from doing so: Two mysteries are going on at once, and we have no idea which piece of information applies to which case.

The first mystery builds on the cliffhanger from the last episode. Sakuta is in panic mode after hearing about Mai being in danger. His focus is completely on keeping her safe—and that makes sense. Remember, Sakuta has seen Mai die. Sure, the memories may technically come from another version of himself, but that makes them no less traumatic. Add to that the fact that all this is happening at the same time of the year, and you can see why his usually calm veneer is slipping.

His meeting with Touko carries this tension, even as we get some much-needed info about her claim of spreading Puberty Syndrome like Santa Claus. While there is some truth to what she is saying, it's not targeted—even if it is somewhat intentional. Touko loves singing and songwriting and wants her music to touch the hearts of those who listen. Of course, it just so happens that said songs often cause people to become introspective, which in turn causes Puberty Syndrome to flare up. And while Touko does say she hated Mai (and refuses to elaborate), she clearly uses the past tense to describe her feelings.

The other mystery we have is what exactly is going on with Himeji. While we haven't spent much time with her directly, she has popped up more than a few times over the course of the series so far—either causing romantic misunderstandings with her teachers or seeming to hit on Sakuta.

All we really know, even after this episode, is that she has Puberty Syndrome and that it was caused by her being unable to get over a broken heart. Add to that some seemingly prophetic dreams where Sakuta ditches Mai on Christmas Eve to go on a date with Himeji—which should be unthinkable given his current state of mind—and we have a case as confusing as it is unsettling. And now that the general setup is out of the way, it's time to see how these pieces all fall into place.

Rating:

Random Thoughts:

• Mai continues to be an MVP girlfriend. She knows what's bothering Sakuta even without him saying--and is willing to give up on her birthday plans if that means he can ease his mind.

• Since so many people online seem to think that Mai is Touko, I wonder if the danger to Mai is that Touko will become her as a result—merging the two and leaving Touko in control. 

• The thing about prophecy is that it's always up to interpretation. The “date” we see could just be Sakuta and Himeji staging a Christmas date on a completely different day because seeing said event in his dreams is what gets Sakuta to cure her Puberty Syndrome. 

• I'm surprised that Sakuta didn't say no to Himeji joining his class just to see what would happen. 

Rascal Does Not Dream of Santa Claus is currently streaming on Crunchyroll.

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