(L+CR) Hanebado!

[germanturkey]

strong introduction for Connie. we might get the background for Ayano now too. i know this isn't that type of show, but i hope we get ice cold Ayano from the prologue at some point.

[Kazu-kun]

Originally Posted by germanturkey

i know this isn't that type of show, but i hope we get ice cold Ayano from the prologue at some point.

Ayano's cold mode should appear if she recognizes Connie is the same blonde from the magazine she was holding in episode 1. The magazine mentioned a prodigy from Denmark. It can only be Connie.

On a side note, I'm not a fan of how they turned Connie into a turbo bitch, but I guess that's to be expected from this adaptation.

[blakstealth]

I hope Ayano slices and dices next episode; I think she can take the hint of who Connie really is. And I wonder what the deal is with Sora. She's calm and collected on the outside, but it looks like there's more to her than meets the eye.

[magnumcyclonex]

Oh...more drama! It's like playing against her mom. No wonder the episode had a lot of hair in it. The situation is getting more hairy! =p

[Triple_R]

I... don't get Connie's deal. I mean, she can't possibly be jealous of Ayano, can she?

Ayano seemingly has been abandoned by her mom for several years. And if Connie is that prodigy that Ayano's mom took under her wing, then it's possible that Ayano's mom abandoned her for Connie.

If, say, Ayano's mom had to stop training Connie in order to go back home and take care of Ayano, then I'd get Connie's deal. But as is, why the heck would Connie bear a grudge towards Ayano? I hope Episode 5 raises a good reason here, because it doesn't make much sense to me at the moment.


I really liked the first half of Episode 4, with all the lowkey team bonding. The matches had their entertaining aspects, but I kinda wish we could have got a breather from this show's pretty consistently heavy drama so far. Ah well. It was good to see Ayano open up a bit, and be in good spirits with the rest of her club... though I wonder how long Connie will let that last.

[devilo96]

soon we can see ayano mental disorder power lol

[TinyRedLeaf]

Speaking as anime-only viewer, it's my hunch that Ayano's mother left her daughter because she thought she had become a negative influence on Ayano. It's otherwise hard to reconcile how distant she is today, compared with how she happy she seemed to be, when playing with the much-younger Ayano.

Given her obsession with badminton, I can easily imagine Uchika unwittingly becoming a "tiger mum", as her daughter's talent became more apparent. And I suspect Uchika had a rude awakening of sorts when Ayano collapsed from playing the tournament while suffering from a cold. She may have realised at the time that she had pushed Ayano too hard, and was gradually killing her daughter's love for the sport. Hence her departure.

And that could also explain why Connie feels the need to challenge Ayano, because she believes that Uchika continues to feel that her daughter is the superior player.

Well, even if my hunch proves correct, that's still a pretty dumb reason for abandoning a child. But Uchika's parents (or parents-in-law?) did describe her as an awkward person. Combine that with the Japanese aversion towards public displays of affection, and you'd have a character like Uchika, I suppose. It's not very plausible but, hey, I guess it works as a dramatic device.

That aside, Hanebado easily continues to be my favourite series this season.

[Liddo-kun]

Watched episode 4:

Dropped... not enjoying to watch it anymore.

[sikvod00]

Poor Ayano is the target of yet another person's issues LOL.

No doubt about it, Connie is a nasty piece of work when it comes to competitive badminton. People with that much pride and arrogance also tend to have the most insecurities. Most sane individuals would be fine just going even in a 1v2 game. But she wants a blow out to prove in uncertain terms her superiority. Here's hoping she gets put in her place next episode.

I pretty much agree with TinyRedLead's analysis regarding Uchika. I hadn't considered the "tiger mom" aspect until then. I do know that can run deep in Asian cultures. Though also like they mentioned, it's a very round-about method to resolve the problem instead of just talking.

[drawr]

I didn't read the manga but here I was thinking Ayano and Connie's moms got married in denmark and that's why she's calling Ayano big sis. Welp. Ayano's mom is still a pos for leaving her without a word.

[Mr. DJ]

I really hope there's more to Ayano's mom than what she remembers. Her mom apparently being a terrible parent and then introducing two more girls that are vapid cunts as well? That's laying three shitty characters in two episodes...and pink haired girl should have had her ass whooped, I know the bit was meant to be comedy, but fuck that lol

[EroKing]

Now that's the kind of look I wanted in my MC. Can't wait to see Ayano in a match full-on beast mode.

[Kazu-kun]

She should have been "beast mode" in this match. And why did they turn Connie into such a bitch? Why is the anime ruining everything?

[blakstealth]

Originally Posted by Kazu-kun

She should have been "beast mode" in this match. And why did they turn Connie into such a bitch? Why is the anime ruining everything?

I think we get it; you're not the biggest fan of the adaptation lol.

[Kazu-kun]

Considering how much they changed including character personalities it might as well be anime original. As an adaption, it's a freaking failure.

[germanturkey]

you don't need to point it out every week..

that's some serial killer producing levels of provocation connie was throwing at ayano this ep. they're not likely to revert her back to the crushing everyone for fun persona, but rather have it come out at certain points in the match.

[foxbox360]

I guess Ayano knows her mama is foul and decided to move on while destroying all her opponents.

[Stark700]

"I need to win, I need to win, I need to win!"

Glad to see Ayano regaining her confidence back. It's unfortunate that Ayano's racket strings broke during the match. Maybe she'll get her revenge match again someday. At least she tried her hardest.

Connie took the match a bit personally too.

[foxbox360]

What will Ayano played for, Friends, Fun, or Revenge on Mommy abandoning her? I can never tell whats going on in her head.

[devilo96]

*mod snip*
Btw the manga is weekly or monthly?