Sakura Trick - Episode 9

It's almost the New Year in this week's Sakura Trick, so of course while Haruka and Yuu spend time with their respective families they also make sure they have some time to spend with each other, if only via the phone.

Mind you, it seems that a phone call with Haruka is hard work, as she tries to persuade Yuu to sing along to embarrassing song lyrics amongst other things.  However, the real problem comes when Yuu finds out that her New Year soba is ready, as Haruka doesn't want her to get off the phone and descends into a fit of jealousy at the thought that someone other than her will get to be wished a happy New Year by Yuu first.  In fact, jealousy seems to be the order of the day as Mitsuki finds herself wishing that it was her on the phone to Haruka.

This jealousy rolls on, as Mitsuki frets over Yuu and Haruka walking to school with their arms linked, alleging that she wishes that she was the one linking arms with her sister whereas the truth of her thought process is rather different.  When the pair disappear in the midst of all that fretting, Mitsuki, Yuzu and Kaede try to track them down, only to find them hiding out in a kid's playground ki... err, I mean, making plans for a surprise event to commemorate Mitsuki's graduation.  Finally, we move away from our main pair of characters to spend a little time with Yuzu and Kaede, as the former dips her toe into the world of moped riding.

Although its entertainment value dropped off quite sharply during its second half, the first segment of this week's Sakura Trick was another good example of what the series does well - it was amusing and effortlessly sweet in its outlook even when it's riffing on the same old ideas and setups.  Like so many animated comedies it struggles to keep consistency, but at present the series continues to do enough to keep me amused almost every week, which is certainly in its favour.