[REVIEW] Gokusen 2 - 03
Aug. 14th, 2009 08:56 pm![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
mecSee disclaimer in first post.
Gokusen 2 - Episode 03
Plot: Yankumi's in a good mood - she can feel she's forming a bond with her cute students. Beware! The other teachers warn her against taking it too easy. Turn your back on those 3-D students for a second and who knows what could happen! (That depends. If one of them is Hayato and the other is Ryu, I think we can probably figure out what is happening for ourselves.)
At first glance, the class are all sitting quietly, heads bent over their desks, ready for their daily dose of Yankumi - all except Okuma, who's stood in the middle like a big purple scarecrow. Undaunted, Yankumi strides past him to the very back of the classroom, where those five - yes, five, Ryu's back in the gang - sit. You have to admire their guts, if not their artistic skills. Instead of five students, we have five carefully-constructed dummies. Yankumi is on the warpath!
Her scream of rage somehow echoes through the ether and is heard by Ryu and Hayato, who are lying out on the grass (with Tsucchi fanning himself nearby) while Hyuuga and Take run around with a kite. Ryu felt a chill go down his spine; Hayato nods in silent agreement. Perhaps Ryu wore him out earlier and he doesn't have the energy to talk. Tsucchi reckons they've caught a cold...just before he sneezes. (Cultural note: you'll sneeze if someone's talking about you, rather than have your ears burn.)
I'm not sure how long Yankumi's been on the job but it's evidently long enough that teachers (other than the love-struck Baba-sensei) are willing to consider her for after-school activities of the alcoholic kind. Shiratori-sensei just so happens to know a great place near the station, which Yankumi is not interested in until she hears that Kujo-sensei ("Burberry-sama!") and friend will be coming too. Yankumi sees all her men in such a sparkly light, they might as well all be stars of toothpaste commercials. But darn it, Shiratori-sensei knows Kujo-sensei far too well for Yankumi's liking, provoking a fit of jealousy that almost leads to her strangling the hapless Baba-sensei.
Things go from bad to worse when they're actually out, as the other male teacher is unable to attend and Yankumi finds herself alone with the latest love of her life, and her no. 1 love rival. And...uh...Baba-sensei, who somehow ended up coming along, though he's sitting alone on his side of the table. He looks like he's there for a job interview. Both women ignore him totally as they strive for Kujo's attention, Yankumi thrilled to discover her potential beau likes combat sports - though sadly, only to watch. He doesn't share her love of a fist striking its target, aww. Perhaps she's better off with one of her students after all. Oh Sawada Shin, where are you?
The meal gets interrupted by Yankumi's rather irritating cell phone ring. It's Take on the other end, with the bad news that Tsucchi and Hyuuga have been caught by the police. I still find it very odd that high school students have their teacher's cell phone number, particularly when they weren't even speaking to her a couple of episodes ago, but that's Japan for you.
Yankumi approaches the police station like she'd approach a gang of thugs threatening her precious students. Take hides behind Ryu and Hayato, who of course are far too cool to appear scared, and they fill her in. It's a very stupid story, honestly. The pair of them were riding double on a bike, failed to stop when the police officer told them to, and got chased a little. Hands up, it's over, the end. They haven't been released because the cops thought they were bike thieves.
As Hayato takes great pains to point out, the bike wasn't stolen - it was borrowed from Honda in Class A. Wasn't it, Honda? Standing over on the side, Honda agrees, but qualifies this by saying they threatened to beat him up if he didn't lend it to them. Oops. Hayato would prefer to make him remember properly, but Take, while looking skywards, holds him back. He'll probably pay for that later. Ryu's on the other side of Take, which, I suspect, is why he didn't do it himself.
3-D's reputation must be terrible - the cops hauled them in after hearing their school and class! (The subs here say Shirokin, but since they were just as bad...) As far as Take and co. are concerned, they tried to explain properly but the police just wouldn't listen. Now Yankumi's mad. She's already to go in, spoiling for a fight...but they remind her that she's a teacher, she should go in as a normal person. Wouldn't do to get in a fight, would it?
It's clear no one here has that much respect for the police - Hayato's even sitting on a desk, as far as I can make out, while Yankumi attempts to negotiate for her students. They're still being interrogated, it seems. Hayato doesn't think much of this. It's unfortunate for Yankumi that her response to him involves a slang word for police. Take's look of shock is priceless.
A slightly sleazy-looking detective saunters in, sits down and puts his feet up on the desk. Ryu looks down at him with disdain, probably evaluating the cut of his trousers or something, This guy, he doesn't think much of 3-D either, and Yankumi feels the same about him. She lunges when he talks trash about her students; said students have to hold her back. Ryu mutters that didn't she say they weren't supposed to defy the police? That makes her all smiles again.
Where do you take your students once you've sprung them from the police station? To Kuma's ramen place, of course. The (in)Famous Five even receive extra meat on the house. While they eat up, Yankumi tells them not to mind police officers who badmouth them. Sadly, their approach is that if they're going to be told they're bad anyway, they might as well live up to it.
How can anyone say they're bad when they're such sweet boys? Hayato gives Yankumi a piece of meat from his bowl and apologises for troubling her - he's certainly changed his tune, hasn't he? Perhaps he's remembering how she saved his neck last week. But it's not his way of thanking her, oh no. Yabuki Hayato doesn't do such things. Yankumi is quietly thrilled when the others follow suit, though Ryu doesn't do it till everyone (except Tsucchi) looks at him, and even then it's with a very strange expression.
Back home, everyone is impressed that Yankumi went to the slammer - no, sorry, the police station - to retrieve her students. She's glad it turned out well, but wishes she'd been able to continue partying with Kujo-sensei. Cue jealousy on Tetsu's part. Sorry, sweetie, it's never gonna happen.
Elsewhere, a pair of unfortunate young men are beaten up by guys wearing the Kurogin uniform and pin and claiming to be Ryu and co. Oh dear. This can't bode well, and neither does Baba-sensei's offer of a date, which Yankumi turns down by claiming she doesn't like violent things. Perhaps it's not wise to say this to the man you've tried to strangle.
An interruption arrives in the form of trouble. (When doesn't it?) There are some students from other schools outside, demanding Hayato and Ryu be handed over. Could that be Sawatari's ulcer playing up, there? There are, in fact, an awful lot of badly beaten students out there, and Hayato and Ryu haven't arrived yet. Should they call the police? No, because that would get Sawatari unwanted attention from above. Somehow, the teachers are going to protect Kurogin Gakuen by themselves. Never mind that Yankumi is the only one who could possibly do this, and she can't let anyone see.
Not that Yankumi (or Shiratori-sensei) get to participate at all, though the other female teacher does, linking arms with the men to form a line in front of the angry students. I'm not sure how yelling at them through a megaphone is going to settle the situation. The teachers retreat.
It's up to Yankumi to save the day - alone. The students surround her, but are surprisingly unthreatening when they answer her questions about how they received their injuries. It doesn't occur to any of them that their attackers might not have been Hayato and Ryu, because...wait for it...they introduced themselves. Call me crazy, but if I was going to beat someone up at night, I sure wouldn't tell my victim how to find me in the day, especially while wearing a mask that hid my face anyway. What would be the point? To frame someone else, naturally. These guys don't get that, but they do eventually get that they have to leave now when Yankumi twists the one guy's arm up behind his back - after being provoked, of course. She gets a little tough and the whole crowd of them run away in fear. I want to be this woman.
When 3-D are finally gathered in the classroom, Yankumi checks - just to make sure - that her students had nothing to do with the attacks on guys from other schools. They are, of course, insulted that anyone would think they'd attack someone like that and say their names. Murder mystery music! Who is trying to frame Yankumi's precious students? Could it be the Ara High guys? Ah, but things are settled with them. Could it be Goda from Jinguju? (Isn't there a Goda in the next series too?) Shibata from Ryujin? Jounan Tech? There's just too many to identify the most likely culprit.
While Yankumi has one of her SFX-filled staring contests with Sawatari over her belief in her students, 3-D get riled up about people using their names, wearing Kurogin pins and uniforms. (Where did Take hear about this, I wonder?) Hyuuga idly plays with the hair of the guy in front of him, aww. Tsucchi has both anger-management issues and the desire to play detective. Perhaps he should've tried out for the role of Kinta in Tantei Gakuen Q. Hayato tries to look thoughtful and decisive when he stands up, but spoils it by suggesting they do it (find the culprits) in an adorably cute little voice. 3-D are all excited! They'll need snacks and a sleeping bag for the search, too!
Outside the circle of happy detectives, Ryu sits alone, wondering if perhaps they're not going off the track a bit?
It says a lot about Hayato's style of leadership that when they go out to search, he's sitting on one of those playground rockers like a little kid while everyone else gathers round him. They've got pictures to work from now, they'll find the attackers in no time! Or so the rest of the class think. Hayato would make a great cheerleader. Ryu, on the other hand...well, I can see his point. The drawing of the five fakes isn't going to help anyone identify them. It's not a bad picture, but of course all the guys are wearing masks!
The class split into small groups to ask people on the street, meeting with no success. Yankumi finds Hayato and co. stepping out of a pachinko parlour - not exactly the place you want to get caught by your teacher - but is eager to help when she finds out what they're up to. She's about as impressed as Ryu with the drawing, and advises them to go home as they'll be in trouble if spotted out so late at night.
Too late, the sleazy cop's shown up. There's villainous music playing so I'm sorry, I can't like the guy. He takes a moment to accuse them of breaking into offices, stealing purses and the like, which they take exception to. Hayato, in particular, seems to have a real problem with the police. (Perhaps it's because he really doesn't relish the thought of gaining Ryu's father as an in-law.)
Even the henchmen think the drawing's no good. More family frolics and discussion with Yankumi's grandfather on all that's wrong with the world. He's more philosopher than gangster.
Meanwhile, on their way home, Hayato and co. encounter a familiar face (many familiar faces, actually) in the park. Kudo, leader of a bunch of drop-outs, who freely admits that he and his crew were behind the attacks, purely for fun. He approaches Hayato and Ryu, who give identical head twitches, and offers them a place with the gang. I guess the others weren't good enough to qualify.
Kudo tries to appeal to Ryu by saying that all this time, Ryu's hated school. Um...based on Ryu's eyebrows, he appears to be trying to remember when he said that. He denies hating school, earning himself a suspicious look from Take, Hyuuga and Tsucchi - and I don't know what kind of look from Hayato but he comes away with a slight smirk, so that must be good. Hayato laughs and agrees that school has become kind of interesting now. Kudo's so offended that he came all this way to recruit them and they're just not interested. Ryu gets to decline while the wind blows his hair like a shampoo commercial; Hayato risks getting up in Kudo's face for his bunny-eared "ja ne". He's overdone it on the lipstick again.
Their refusal doesn't go down well with Kudo and his gang, who all go armed and quickly have them surrounded. But never fear, Hayato's got a plan! And it's one that requires him to partially bare his collarbones, for some reason. Formation B it is, though Ryu looks quite shocked by this (in an understated way, because this is Ryu we're talking about). Could it be he'd expected to stay and fight? But this formation is specifically to avoid fighting - like a special move in Ranma, this formation is for running away from the enemy!
Everyone succeeds spectacularly despite some ludicrous hiding places...except Ryu, who finds himself cornered. Fade to black.
I'm sensing a theme. Episode 1: Ryu gets rescued. Episode 2: Ryu goes in to rescue Hayato...and gets rescued. Episode 3: Ryu gets rescued. Where's Nakamaru when you need him?
Cut to Hayato running through a tunnel. He gets a phone call from Ryu's phone, but instead of Ryu on the other end he gets Kudo. (I'm assuming. These generic psycho thugs all sound the same to me.) If Hayato doesn't make it to the underground storage soon (sorry, where?), Ryu will be full of holes. That sounds more like a gun-related threat to me, but the dropouts were all armed with knives so I guess they're just planning to cut him up. That, or lock him in an Iron Maiden. Hayato pouts for a moment before running off to find his other half.
Ryu's not hard to find, thankfully, lying bruised and bloody against some boxes but somehow managing to smile when he sees Hayato. "A sight for sore eyes" doesn't quite cover it. Kudo's nowhere to be seen, and Hayato realises why when he hears the door start to close. I love this bit. He helps Ryu up (Akame bodily contact! Be still, my heart!) and they run for the exit. I'm pretty sure Indiana Jones could've managed to get both himself and his hat under the door, but it's too much for a couple of high school boys and they're now trapped inside. Hayato tries his phone, forgetting he's underground, while Ryu slumps against the door and tries to figure out exactly what Kudo's playing at.
That would be jewellery theft, incidentally. They plant Ryu's wallet at the scene.
Next morning finds Hayato and Ryu dozing against the boxes. It's a funny angle, this first shot. Hayato looks like he's got his hands tied behind him; Ryu looks like he's holding a gun in both hands. The creaking door wakes Hayato, who wakes Ryu in turn. How did they spend the night? Ask the fanfic writers. Their early-morning walk home is ruined by the sound of sirens and no fewer than three police cars. That's an awful lot of manpower for two high school boys. Sleazy detective is thrilled to finally have caught 3-D students.
He then goes to the school, almost giving Sawatari a heart attack. (Tsucchi, Take and Hyuuga have a brief chat outside the classroom - they haven't been able to contact Ryu and Hayato.) While Hayato and Ryu haven't been arrested, the jewellery store was robbed by two men in Kurogin uniform and Ryu's student card was at the scene. They are simply being asked for their stories. At the police station. But they're not under arrest. Yankumi's the only person who truly believes they didn't do it.
At the police station, it's Ryu's turn to apologise to Hayato, soft piano music playing in the background and some oblivious law enforcement type in the corner, pretending he's not there. Ryu's really into his eye make-up, isn't he? Hayato, bless him, says Ryu has no cause to apologise.
Yankumi has to break the news to the rest of 3-D, so Tsucchi and co. fill her in on Kudo, who was expelled just before his own graduation and is now trying to ruin things for his kouhai. The class can't decide what to do. The police will never believe them. Yankumi can't leave things like this - she's off to find Kudo herself. It's very sweet, the way they try to stop her from going because it's too dangerous. Speaking of things that are sweet, here comes Kizuna...
You can tell Tsucchi secretly wants to be leader. Whenever Hayato's not around, he's always the guy making the first move. 3-D are off to join the hunt for Kudo!
It's a proud moment when they all find Yankumi instead, having been searching hard all over town. They've got an address, and they give it to her. Trusting a teacher - that's a big step. I'm so pleased with them all. Yankumi loses the hairbands and glasses as she goes, busting into Kudo's chosen hangout - a closed bar? - easily. They're dividing up the loot and have no intention of turning themselves in (Yankumi has to check).
You all know what happens now. Lecture, fight, bad guys lose. I'd take this a lot more seriously if I could actually hear the punches land.
The door to the interrogation room (?) opens. I doubt Sawatari's the person Ryu and Hayato would like to see but he's there to tell them they've been cleared and they can leave. The sleazy cop takes them outside and Sawatari actually apologises for the trouble, even though Ryu and Hayato haven't done anything. He gets the shock of his life when he sees 3-D, headed by Yankumi, waiting outside the station.
The cop stupidly inflames the class by thanking them - sort of - for finding the culprit but saying they should stay out of police business. For an encore, he tells Hayato and Ryu to stop doing things that will make them suspects and this time Ryu does hold Hayato back. But they're in the right, and Yankumi wants the cop to apologise.
It's very sad. Hayato and Ryu don't expect an apology, they're used to things like this. It doesn't matter, they say, if it doesn't happen. But it matters to their homeroom teacher, who never wastes an opportunity to lecture on being a decent human being. She even bows to the cop to ask him to apologise to them. 3-D are amazed. Hayato, in particular, looks like he's about to start tearing up. (We'll see Jin put this skill to good use a couple of years later in Yuukan Club...)
It's a reluctant apology and it sounds sarcastic, but it's enough to get the class cheering. Group hug! Ryu is less than thrilled to be manhandled by Hyuuga, but as far as I can see (past the '70s guy's hair), the class are trying to push Hayato and Ryu closer together. I approve.
Once again it's off to Kuma's place to celebrate! Too bad Yankumi's paying and she hasn't got enough, but the entire class has just called her Yankumi and she's so happy she'll let them eat as much as they want... On a random note, Ryu's really into his food. Both times they've been here, he's barely looked up from his bowl. While Hayato joins in the cheering, Ryu just sits next to him and keeps working on the food. This might explain why Hayato's got the sharp cheekbones this time around...
Obligatory Akame commentary: The fact that they're now talking again hasn't dimmed the intensity of the stares between Hayato and Ryu one bit - or the volume of my squeals when the two of them actually touch. Since this is Gokusen, most touches relate to violence in some way. Hayato helping a beaten Ryu up when the two of them get locked in, for example, or Ryu holding Hayato back from attacking the sleazy cop. I love that they're now a pair again. Even the jerks trying to frame them link them together - and they obviously know Hayato and Ryu are on speaking terms again, or they might as well not have bothered. (I suppose this should be "Obligatory Ryu/Hayato commentary", or "Hayaryu", or "Ryuto", or something like that, but I'm not changing it now.)
Best scene: Formation B! It's all so dramatic, the sinister music, the build-up for a big showdown in the park...and then they all scarper. Ryu's face when Hayato names the formation is also quite the picture. Second place has to go to the two of them trapped underground. Last episode, Hayato would gladly have been the one giving Ryu those bruises. This episode, he doesn't even hesitate before rushing in to save him, and we just see this lovely, quite tender side of Hayato who keeps looking back at Ryu to see he's doing okay when they're running for the door.
Conclusion: Yankumi's love life would run a lot smoother if she didn't land up working with cute, girly teachers; even delinquents who left school ages ago know Ryu and Hayato are back together (that's some grapevine they've got going there), and Hayato's got such a problem with the police he might as well go work for Yankumi's grandfather.
Gokusen 2 - Episode 03
Plot: Yankumi's in a good mood - she can feel she's forming a bond with her cute students. Beware! The other teachers warn her against taking it too easy. Turn your back on those 3-D students for a second and who knows what could happen! (That depends. If one of them is Hayato and the other is Ryu, I think we can probably figure out what is happening for ourselves.)
At first glance, the class are all sitting quietly, heads bent over their desks, ready for their daily dose of Yankumi - all except Okuma, who's stood in the middle like a big purple scarecrow. Undaunted, Yankumi strides past him to the very back of the classroom, where those five - yes, five, Ryu's back in the gang - sit. You have to admire their guts, if not their artistic skills. Instead of five students, we have five carefully-constructed dummies. Yankumi is on the warpath!
Her scream of rage somehow echoes through the ether and is heard by Ryu and Hayato, who are lying out on the grass (with Tsucchi fanning himself nearby) while Hyuuga and Take run around with a kite. Ryu felt a chill go down his spine; Hayato nods in silent agreement. Perhaps Ryu wore him out earlier and he doesn't have the energy to talk. Tsucchi reckons they've caught a cold...just before he sneezes. (Cultural note: you'll sneeze if someone's talking about you, rather than have your ears burn.)
I'm not sure how long Yankumi's been on the job but it's evidently long enough that teachers (other than the love-struck Baba-sensei) are willing to consider her for after-school activities of the alcoholic kind. Shiratori-sensei just so happens to know a great place near the station, which Yankumi is not interested in until she hears that Kujo-sensei ("Burberry-sama!") and friend will be coming too. Yankumi sees all her men in such a sparkly light, they might as well all be stars of toothpaste commercials. But darn it, Shiratori-sensei knows Kujo-sensei far too well for Yankumi's liking, provoking a fit of jealousy that almost leads to her strangling the hapless Baba-sensei.
Things go from bad to worse when they're actually out, as the other male teacher is unable to attend and Yankumi finds herself alone with the latest love of her life, and her no. 1 love rival. And...uh...Baba-sensei, who somehow ended up coming along, though he's sitting alone on his side of the table. He looks like he's there for a job interview. Both women ignore him totally as they strive for Kujo's attention, Yankumi thrilled to discover her potential beau likes combat sports - though sadly, only to watch. He doesn't share her love of a fist striking its target, aww. Perhaps she's better off with one of her students after all. Oh Sawada Shin, where are you?
The meal gets interrupted by Yankumi's rather irritating cell phone ring. It's Take on the other end, with the bad news that Tsucchi and Hyuuga have been caught by the police. I still find it very odd that high school students have their teacher's cell phone number, particularly when they weren't even speaking to her a couple of episodes ago, but that's Japan for you.
Yankumi approaches the police station like she'd approach a gang of thugs threatening her precious students. Take hides behind Ryu and Hayato, who of course are far too cool to appear scared, and they fill her in. It's a very stupid story, honestly. The pair of them were riding double on a bike, failed to stop when the police officer told them to, and got chased a little. Hands up, it's over, the end. They haven't been released because the cops thought they were bike thieves.
As Hayato takes great pains to point out, the bike wasn't stolen - it was borrowed from Honda in Class A. Wasn't it, Honda? Standing over on the side, Honda agrees, but qualifies this by saying they threatened to beat him up if he didn't lend it to them. Oops. Hayato would prefer to make him remember properly, but Take, while looking skywards, holds him back. He'll probably pay for that later. Ryu's on the other side of Take, which, I suspect, is why he didn't do it himself.
3-D's reputation must be terrible - the cops hauled them in after hearing their school and class! (The subs here say Shirokin, but since they were just as bad...) As far as Take and co. are concerned, they tried to explain properly but the police just wouldn't listen. Now Yankumi's mad. She's already to go in, spoiling for a fight...but they remind her that she's a teacher, she should go in as a normal person. Wouldn't do to get in a fight, would it?
It's clear no one here has that much respect for the police - Hayato's even sitting on a desk, as far as I can make out, while Yankumi attempts to negotiate for her students. They're still being interrogated, it seems. Hayato doesn't think much of this. It's unfortunate for Yankumi that her response to him involves a slang word for police. Take's look of shock is priceless.
A slightly sleazy-looking detective saunters in, sits down and puts his feet up on the desk. Ryu looks down at him with disdain, probably evaluating the cut of his trousers or something, This guy, he doesn't think much of 3-D either, and Yankumi feels the same about him. She lunges when he talks trash about her students; said students have to hold her back. Ryu mutters that didn't she say they weren't supposed to defy the police? That makes her all smiles again.
Where do you take your students once you've sprung them from the police station? To Kuma's ramen place, of course. The (in)Famous Five even receive extra meat on the house. While they eat up, Yankumi tells them not to mind police officers who badmouth them. Sadly, their approach is that if they're going to be told they're bad anyway, they might as well live up to it.
How can anyone say they're bad when they're such sweet boys? Hayato gives Yankumi a piece of meat from his bowl and apologises for troubling her - he's certainly changed his tune, hasn't he? Perhaps he's remembering how she saved his neck last week. But it's not his way of thanking her, oh no. Yabuki Hayato doesn't do such things. Yankumi is quietly thrilled when the others follow suit, though Ryu doesn't do it till everyone (except Tsucchi) looks at him, and even then it's with a very strange expression.
Back home, everyone is impressed that Yankumi went to the slammer - no, sorry, the police station - to retrieve her students. She's glad it turned out well, but wishes she'd been able to continue partying with Kujo-sensei. Cue jealousy on Tetsu's part. Sorry, sweetie, it's never gonna happen.
Elsewhere, a pair of unfortunate young men are beaten up by guys wearing the Kurogin uniform and pin and claiming to be Ryu and co. Oh dear. This can't bode well, and neither does Baba-sensei's offer of a date, which Yankumi turns down by claiming she doesn't like violent things. Perhaps it's not wise to say this to the man you've tried to strangle.
An interruption arrives in the form of trouble. (When doesn't it?) There are some students from other schools outside, demanding Hayato and Ryu be handed over. Could that be Sawatari's ulcer playing up, there? There are, in fact, an awful lot of badly beaten students out there, and Hayato and Ryu haven't arrived yet. Should they call the police? No, because that would get Sawatari unwanted attention from above. Somehow, the teachers are going to protect Kurogin Gakuen by themselves. Never mind that Yankumi is the only one who could possibly do this, and she can't let anyone see.
Not that Yankumi (or Shiratori-sensei) get to participate at all, though the other female teacher does, linking arms with the men to form a line in front of the angry students. I'm not sure how yelling at them through a megaphone is going to settle the situation. The teachers retreat.
It's up to Yankumi to save the day - alone. The students surround her, but are surprisingly unthreatening when they answer her questions about how they received their injuries. It doesn't occur to any of them that their attackers might not have been Hayato and Ryu, because...wait for it...they introduced themselves. Call me crazy, but if I was going to beat someone up at night, I sure wouldn't tell my victim how to find me in the day, especially while wearing a mask that hid my face anyway. What would be the point? To frame someone else, naturally. These guys don't get that, but they do eventually get that they have to leave now when Yankumi twists the one guy's arm up behind his back - after being provoked, of course. She gets a little tough and the whole crowd of them run away in fear. I want to be this woman.
When 3-D are finally gathered in the classroom, Yankumi checks - just to make sure - that her students had nothing to do with the attacks on guys from other schools. They are, of course, insulted that anyone would think they'd attack someone like that and say their names. Murder mystery music! Who is trying to frame Yankumi's precious students? Could it be the Ara High guys? Ah, but things are settled with them. Could it be Goda from Jinguju? (Isn't there a Goda in the next series too?) Shibata from Ryujin? Jounan Tech? There's just too many to identify the most likely culprit.
While Yankumi has one of her SFX-filled staring contests with Sawatari over her belief in her students, 3-D get riled up about people using their names, wearing Kurogin pins and uniforms. (Where did Take hear about this, I wonder?) Hyuuga idly plays with the hair of the guy in front of him, aww. Tsucchi has both anger-management issues and the desire to play detective. Perhaps he should've tried out for the role of Kinta in Tantei Gakuen Q. Hayato tries to look thoughtful and decisive when he stands up, but spoils it by suggesting they do it (find the culprits) in an adorably cute little voice. 3-D are all excited! They'll need snacks and a sleeping bag for the search, too!
Outside the circle of happy detectives, Ryu sits alone, wondering if perhaps they're not going off the track a bit?
It says a lot about Hayato's style of leadership that when they go out to search, he's sitting on one of those playground rockers like a little kid while everyone else gathers round him. They've got pictures to work from now, they'll find the attackers in no time! Or so the rest of the class think. Hayato would make a great cheerleader. Ryu, on the other hand...well, I can see his point. The drawing of the five fakes isn't going to help anyone identify them. It's not a bad picture, but of course all the guys are wearing masks!
The class split into small groups to ask people on the street, meeting with no success. Yankumi finds Hayato and co. stepping out of a pachinko parlour - not exactly the place you want to get caught by your teacher - but is eager to help when she finds out what they're up to. She's about as impressed as Ryu with the drawing, and advises them to go home as they'll be in trouble if spotted out so late at night.
Too late, the sleazy cop's shown up. There's villainous music playing so I'm sorry, I can't like the guy. He takes a moment to accuse them of breaking into offices, stealing purses and the like, which they take exception to. Hayato, in particular, seems to have a real problem with the police. (Perhaps it's because he really doesn't relish the thought of gaining Ryu's father as an in-law.)
Even the henchmen think the drawing's no good. More family frolics and discussion with Yankumi's grandfather on all that's wrong with the world. He's more philosopher than gangster.
Meanwhile, on their way home, Hayato and co. encounter a familiar face (many familiar faces, actually) in the park. Kudo, leader of a bunch of drop-outs, who freely admits that he and his crew were behind the attacks, purely for fun. He approaches Hayato and Ryu, who give identical head twitches, and offers them a place with the gang. I guess the others weren't good enough to qualify.
Kudo tries to appeal to Ryu by saying that all this time, Ryu's hated school. Um...based on Ryu's eyebrows, he appears to be trying to remember when he said that. He denies hating school, earning himself a suspicious look from Take, Hyuuga and Tsucchi - and I don't know what kind of look from Hayato but he comes away with a slight smirk, so that must be good. Hayato laughs and agrees that school has become kind of interesting now. Kudo's so offended that he came all this way to recruit them and they're just not interested. Ryu gets to decline while the wind blows his hair like a shampoo commercial; Hayato risks getting up in Kudo's face for his bunny-eared "ja ne". He's overdone it on the lipstick again.
Their refusal doesn't go down well with Kudo and his gang, who all go armed and quickly have them surrounded. But never fear, Hayato's got a plan! And it's one that requires him to partially bare his collarbones, for some reason. Formation B it is, though Ryu looks quite shocked by this (in an understated way, because this is Ryu we're talking about). Could it be he'd expected to stay and fight? But this formation is specifically to avoid fighting - like a special move in Ranma, this formation is for running away from the enemy!
Everyone succeeds spectacularly despite some ludicrous hiding places...except Ryu, who finds himself cornered. Fade to black.
I'm sensing a theme. Episode 1: Ryu gets rescued. Episode 2: Ryu goes in to rescue Hayato...and gets rescued. Episode 3: Ryu gets rescued. Where's Nakamaru when you need him?
Cut to Hayato running through a tunnel. He gets a phone call from Ryu's phone, but instead of Ryu on the other end he gets Kudo. (I'm assuming. These generic psycho thugs all sound the same to me.) If Hayato doesn't make it to the underground storage soon (sorry, where?), Ryu will be full of holes. That sounds more like a gun-related threat to me, but the dropouts were all armed with knives so I guess they're just planning to cut him up. That, or lock him in an Iron Maiden. Hayato pouts for a moment before running off to find his other half.
Ryu's not hard to find, thankfully, lying bruised and bloody against some boxes but somehow managing to smile when he sees Hayato. "A sight for sore eyes" doesn't quite cover it. Kudo's nowhere to be seen, and Hayato realises why when he hears the door start to close. I love this bit. He helps Ryu up (Akame bodily contact! Be still, my heart!) and they run for the exit. I'm pretty sure Indiana Jones could've managed to get both himself and his hat under the door, but it's too much for a couple of high school boys and they're now trapped inside. Hayato tries his phone, forgetting he's underground, while Ryu slumps against the door and tries to figure out exactly what Kudo's playing at.
That would be jewellery theft, incidentally. They plant Ryu's wallet at the scene.
Next morning finds Hayato and Ryu dozing against the boxes. It's a funny angle, this first shot. Hayato looks like he's got his hands tied behind him; Ryu looks like he's holding a gun in both hands. The creaking door wakes Hayato, who wakes Ryu in turn. How did they spend the night? Ask the fanfic writers. Their early-morning walk home is ruined by the sound of sirens and no fewer than three police cars. That's an awful lot of manpower for two high school boys. Sleazy detective is thrilled to finally have caught 3-D students.
He then goes to the school, almost giving Sawatari a heart attack. (Tsucchi, Take and Hyuuga have a brief chat outside the classroom - they haven't been able to contact Ryu and Hayato.) While Hayato and Ryu haven't been arrested, the jewellery store was robbed by two men in Kurogin uniform and Ryu's student card was at the scene. They are simply being asked for their stories. At the police station. But they're not under arrest. Yankumi's the only person who truly believes they didn't do it.
At the police station, it's Ryu's turn to apologise to Hayato, soft piano music playing in the background and some oblivious law enforcement type in the corner, pretending he's not there. Ryu's really into his eye make-up, isn't he? Hayato, bless him, says Ryu has no cause to apologise.
Yankumi has to break the news to the rest of 3-D, so Tsucchi and co. fill her in on Kudo, who was expelled just before his own graduation and is now trying to ruin things for his kouhai. The class can't decide what to do. The police will never believe them. Yankumi can't leave things like this - she's off to find Kudo herself. It's very sweet, the way they try to stop her from going because it's too dangerous. Speaking of things that are sweet, here comes Kizuna...
You can tell Tsucchi secretly wants to be leader. Whenever Hayato's not around, he's always the guy making the first move. 3-D are off to join the hunt for Kudo!
It's a proud moment when they all find Yankumi instead, having been searching hard all over town. They've got an address, and they give it to her. Trusting a teacher - that's a big step. I'm so pleased with them all. Yankumi loses the hairbands and glasses as she goes, busting into Kudo's chosen hangout - a closed bar? - easily. They're dividing up the loot and have no intention of turning themselves in (Yankumi has to check).
You all know what happens now. Lecture, fight, bad guys lose. I'd take this a lot more seriously if I could actually hear the punches land.
The door to the interrogation room (?) opens. I doubt Sawatari's the person Ryu and Hayato would like to see but he's there to tell them they've been cleared and they can leave. The sleazy cop takes them outside and Sawatari actually apologises for the trouble, even though Ryu and Hayato haven't done anything. He gets the shock of his life when he sees 3-D, headed by Yankumi, waiting outside the station.
The cop stupidly inflames the class by thanking them - sort of - for finding the culprit but saying they should stay out of police business. For an encore, he tells Hayato and Ryu to stop doing things that will make them suspects and this time Ryu does hold Hayato back. But they're in the right, and Yankumi wants the cop to apologise.
It's very sad. Hayato and Ryu don't expect an apology, they're used to things like this. It doesn't matter, they say, if it doesn't happen. But it matters to their homeroom teacher, who never wastes an opportunity to lecture on being a decent human being. She even bows to the cop to ask him to apologise to them. 3-D are amazed. Hayato, in particular, looks like he's about to start tearing up. (We'll see Jin put this skill to good use a couple of years later in Yuukan Club...)
It's a reluctant apology and it sounds sarcastic, but it's enough to get the class cheering. Group hug! Ryu is less than thrilled to be manhandled by Hyuuga, but as far as I can see (past the '70s guy's hair), the class are trying to push Hayato and Ryu closer together. I approve.
Once again it's off to Kuma's place to celebrate! Too bad Yankumi's paying and she hasn't got enough, but the entire class has just called her Yankumi and she's so happy she'll let them eat as much as they want... On a random note, Ryu's really into his food. Both times they've been here, he's barely looked up from his bowl. While Hayato joins in the cheering, Ryu just sits next to him and keeps working on the food. This might explain why Hayato's got the sharp cheekbones this time around...
Obligatory Akame commentary: The fact that they're now talking again hasn't dimmed the intensity of the stares between Hayato and Ryu one bit - or the volume of my squeals when the two of them actually touch. Since this is Gokusen, most touches relate to violence in some way. Hayato helping a beaten Ryu up when the two of them get locked in, for example, or Ryu holding Hayato back from attacking the sleazy cop. I love that they're now a pair again. Even the jerks trying to frame them link them together - and they obviously know Hayato and Ryu are on speaking terms again, or they might as well not have bothered. (I suppose this should be "Obligatory Ryu/Hayato commentary", or "Hayaryu", or "Ryuto", or something like that, but I'm not changing it now.)
Best scene: Formation B! It's all so dramatic, the sinister music, the build-up for a big showdown in the park...and then they all scarper. Ryu's face when Hayato names the formation is also quite the picture. Second place has to go to the two of them trapped underground. Last episode, Hayato would gladly have been the one giving Ryu those bruises. This episode, he doesn't even hesitate before rushing in to save him, and we just see this lovely, quite tender side of Hayato who keeps looking back at Ryu to see he's doing okay when they're running for the door.
Conclusion: Yankumi's love life would run a lot smoother if she didn't land up working with cute, girly teachers; even delinquents who left school ages ago know Ryu and Hayato are back together (that's some grapevine they've got going there), and Hayato's got such a problem with the police he might as well go work for Yankumi's grandfather.