Ore no Imouto - Episode 11 Discussion / Poll

[ninryu]

lol, episode full of b*tching. I have no idea how Minami can take Kirino. I would punch her already.

moe Kuroneko FTW!~~ and lol at Kirino's reaction to moe Kuroneko.
next episode is the last one. : (

[Saturn Beaver]

Spoiler for EP 11:

Finally, frickin' finally. Yeah, this is possibly my favourite episode as well.

From the start, the joke with Kyousuke's mom is quite funny. Afterward, there's Kirino being Kirino as usual to Manami, but for some reasons I'm not annoyed with it like I used to be:
1. I took it way less seriously, as I only see this as a comedy.
2. Maybe because I just watched Yosuga no Sora, but I can't help but see the parallel of how badly would a little sister react when she sees her brother with a glasses-wearing childhood friend.
3. Manami counters each and every one of Kirino's bitching so effortlessly. Not only every plan of her fail, they backfire spectacularly in making Kyousuke appreciate Manami more and vice versa, and there's nothing Kirino can do or say about it. I absolutely loved it, wish to see this more often.

Still...the weakest part is definitely the middle, that is the part that's supposed to be the build up for the second part. There's two things:
1. Like others have said, we don't really get to see Kyousuke depressed. I mean, he has good reason, if I have a little sister like Kirino I'll be depressed too, but we don't especially see how he become more depressed than usual here.
2. Kirino suddenly becoming dere is a bit sudden. This is more from the whole other episodes though, as we can't see that she is secretly grateful towards her brother. Maybe there's a bit, but it always covered by 99% tsun that to see the tsun completely gone here (there still is, but just at the end) is a bit jarring.

But yeah, second part is the best. First of all, Kuroneko. Not only does she pull off a maid outit perfectly, but she really brings out the Neko part of her name really well. Also loved how she trolls them with her manga, and how she calls Kyousuke onii-san (ironically, this ep we got two girls calling him nii-san but not his real sister). Also, is it just me or there may be a trace of genuineness in her calling him that? Dammit, shipping goggles, I thought I took you off already.

But the best part, with Kyousuke confronting Kirino and her finally apologizing and expresses her gratefulness....I've been waiting for it for a month. And to see Kyousuke crying is great too, finally we see what makes him do all that, even if that may be a bit of an unbelievable reason. I especially loves the fact that the crying shows that actually deep down, although he thinks helping Kirino is her main duty as a big brother and doesn't expect reward, even tolerating abuse, he actually needs this sort of gratefulness from her.

And well, Kirino is still a bit of a bitch, but I don't mind. It's not she'll suddenly change after 1 ep (won't like it if she does) and like someone else said, at least now she's just a bitch and not an ungrateful bitch. I can see the eroge inside coming as soon as I see the box-shape, and really, with what she said when giving it as well as the jealousy fit on the first part, I think Kirino's brocon is almost official now? Well, too bad Kyousuke for the gift, but at least you're not Tsuda from SYD who got 3 vibrators for Christmas...

P.S: Kyousuke, learn to alt+tab to something that you're supposed to be doing when playing eroge. And who the hell thought that random ero CG as screensaver is a good idea anyway? Kirino, no doubt, but if it was me, I'll look at CG myself when I want to, no need for auto screensaver.

[revive4563]

I think tsundere is cute but realized that Manami is best after all when watched this episode.

And a warm siblings love ending was established.

[Patriot's Blade]

Kuroneko/Ruri's manga, it made me fell of my chair....

[Archon_Wing]

Hmm, it was okay. The first half was pretty funny when Kirino's plan actually backfires and Manami plays along with it. And they're in the bedroom. How conveient; I think Kirino just helped her brother... And with Kirino in the doorway, watching them. I wonder if she played Yosuga no Sora.

The second half I really didn't care much for; it's like whoa where did this come from? It was a nice kind of resolution with some mutual acknowledgment but I've never seen a story where it resolves so well with so little revealed. So what's wrong with Kirino? What's wrong with Kyousuke; that was a pretty lame flashblack. I guess you really don't need a reason to help someone so close, but that was hardly satisfying given all the stuff we have to go through.

The main problem was the lack of development to this conclusion; after meandering around for so much, and then we kinda jump to this because oh no, it's almost over!

Anyhow, I give this episode a 6 + 1 bonus for a total of 7 because Kuroneko's outfit has a tail (omg cat) . Or she's actually Bernkastel. I don't care.

[Triple_R]

Originally Posted by ion475

Although Kyousuke is the narrator, the story still revolved around Kirino, so, naturally, story would goes into Kirino's "circle" rather than Kyousuke's. Yes, Kyousuke do have other friends,

It's up to the anime to establish that, imo. I'm not going to assume it just because it may be true in the source material. Anime adaptations have completely cut out significant secondary characters in the source material before (Ryou's eventual boyfriend in Clannad is a good example of this that immediately comes to mind for me).

If we don't ever see a particular character or event in the anime (and that is also never referenced), then it doesn't apply to the anime's continuity, imo.

EDIT: Side note...gotta love those 19 10/10 just b/c Kirino finally goes deredere...

So, would you prefer it if she was all-tsun all-the-time? Is there something wrong with her going deredere, in your opinion?

Also, dude, you rated it 10/10 yourself.

[Haak]

It would've been perfect had he not cried...

[D-Gold]

Kirino showing a dere side for more than 5 seconds.
kuroneko calling kyousuke nii-san(goes to re-watch that part)
Manami finding um...books in kyou's room
Mom gets more screen time.


ah such a nice episode. Its a nice way to start off my morning

[SemperMalum]

Great episode.

Just... great.

I need to find a gif of the receptionist. That was one of my favorite parts... Where he looks over, and she's looking down the hall at him.

I can only imagine what's going through her mind. You know it can't be anything clean.

[Kanon]

Originally Posted by Triple_R

The first part of the episode probably would have been hard to take if not for the second half of the episode being there to balance out with it.

Definitely. In fact, as I was watching the first part, the urge to bitch about Kirino like never before swelled up within me and was about about to reach critical mass. Then the last half of the episode came, and all was forgiven... well, not exactly. I still think Kirino is a bitch, but at least she's proven she is not an ungrateful bitch. Which is already plenty of development for her. I even thought she looked... cute... aaaah, what's happening to me!?

Kuroneko is still the cutest by far though. Her handmade cat ears and tail were great, her troll manga was hilarious (I bet she doesn't suspect how spot-on it truly was), and finally, her imouto impersonation was godly and lethal. She totally stole the show once again.

I very much enjoyed seeing Kyousuke finally grow some balls and chew Kirino out as well. This should have happened episodes ago.

Originally Posted by Triple_R

3. Again, Manami is just fantastic. Could you ask for a better friend or girlfriend? She just rolls with everything, and is so honest and eager to help. She's like the ultimate anti-tsundere, really.

Originally Posted by Saturn Beaver

Spoiler for EP 11:

3. Manami counters each and every one of Kirino's bitching so effortlessly. Not only every plan of her fail, they backfire spectacularly in making Kyousuke appreciate Manami more and vice versa, and there's nothing Kirino can do or say about it. I absolutely loved it, wish to see this more often.

I couldn't agree more! Manami's attitude throughout the whole ordeal was just pure win. The ultimate anti-tsundere, indeed. Her defense was flawless. It was so funny to see each of Kirino's attempts fail miserably.

[Ricky Controversy]

I still maintain that the third episode is the best in the series, but I did enjoy this a fair bit.

Like many others, I'd have liked to have seen a bit more clarity in the transition between the first part and second part, but I can also see the logic there. I think Manami being able to decisively shut down her attitude was a crucial step. Sure, she just ended up going the trap route, but the point is that she was made to take a step back from directly bullying, which would give her a space to evaluate her actions.

Again, as always, I am sorely disappointed by the way people are letting moral assessments of characters influence their appreciation of storytelling. Sure, this episode was a little disjointed, but while that is a valid complaint, "Kirino is a bitch, this sucks" is not. The point of the story is that Kirino and Kyousuke have a difficult relationship and there's a lot of distance and pent-up feelings to resolve. If she weren't angry/resentful towards him, we wouldn't have an actual story and this would just be another run-of-the-mill rom-com.

But then, given that the bulk (not all, but the bulk) of the comments that critique the series as a whole because they personally dislike Kirino (and I'm not saying she's not volatile/harsh) usually turn around to talk about how moe/cute they think such and such a character is, I suppose that may be what everyone's wanting.

[MeoTwister5]

Originally Posted by Ricky Controversy

I still maintain that the third episode is the best in the series, but I did enjoy this a fair bit.

Like many others, I'd have liked to have seen a bit more clarity in the transition between the first part and second part, but I can also see the logic there. I think Manami being able to decisively shut down her attitude was a crucial step. Sure, she just ended up going the trap route, but the point is that she was made to take a step back from directly bullying, which would give her a space to evaluate her actions.

Again, as always, I am sorely disappointed by the way people are letting moral assessments of characters influence their appreciation of storytelling. Sure, this episode was a little disjointed, but while that is a valid complaint, "Kirino is a bitch, this sucks" is not. The point of the story is that Kirino and Kyousuke have a difficult relationship and there's a lot of distance and pent-up feelings to resolve. If she weren't angry/resentful towards him, we wouldn't have an actual story and this would just be another run-of-the-mill rom-com.

But then, given that the bulk (not all, but the bulk) of the comments that critique the series as a whole because they personally dislike Kirino (and I'm not saying she's not volatile/harsh) usually turn around to talk about how moe/cute they think such and such a character is, I suppose that may be what everyone's wanting.

I agree. Personally I think it's still because of the (false?) assumption that a viewer must find some redeeming and humanizing character from the main cast for it to be considered "good". I may have hated a lot of the dynamic of between brother and sister up until say the last two episodes of sorts, but one rotten piece of the pie doesn't make the entire pie inedible.

[DJLowrider]

Fantastic episode, loved it. I more or less echo what Ricky said, but I'll add a bit because I'm just that pretentious.

I think people have become far too accustomed to teenaged or even pre-teen characters in anime acting like mature adults. This series has honestly been refreshing insofar as we have characters of that age range acting, for the most part, like how kids their age actually act: petty, spoiled, flawed logic and reasoning and so on. While there certainly do exist exceptions to the norm of how kids in that age range act and carry themselves they are still, at best, just that: Exceptions. They are not the standard.

And hell, by the end of this episode Kirino shows that she's at least begun to get it. She knows she went way out of line with her treatment of Kyousuke and Manami, hence the party and everything. Does it sweep everything that happened before under the rug? No, it happened and it can't be taken back. But it does go to show that in spite of her outward attitude she genuinely appreciates everything Kyousuke has done and endured for the sake of her and her sanity vis a vis her hobby's less-than-acceptable status.

As for Kyousuke, this episode also shows his inner feelings about all that's happened and it really resonated with me. He did everything so far for her sake out of a sense of obligation to family, and when you get down to it there are far worse reasons to do something than because it'd make your sister/brother/mother/father smile or that it'd help them out. If you can't get that, if you can't understand that family is more important than anything, I suggest you re-examine yourself and your priorities because nothing trumps family. Ever.

And finally, Kyousuke did it all without expecting anything in return, even something as simple as a, "Thanks." To actually get as much from Kirino, in such an honest and genuine fashion? I think it'd bring anyone to tears.

Again, great ep if not as mind-blowing as some earlier eps were in terms of their content and execution. Still a 9/10 for me, and just when I was considering dropping this series from my personal contention for Best of 2010 it jumps right back into the ring.

[Triple_R]

Originally Posted by Ricky Controversy

Again, as always, I am sorely disappointed by the way people are letting moral assessments of characters influence their appreciation of storytelling.

Ricky... Kirino is the female lead of this and a protagonist. We're not talking about The Joker or Lex Luthor here. I don't get any sense that the viewer is supposed to dislike Kirino, or that she's simply some sort of obstacle for Kyousuke to overcome. For the drama of this anime to be effective, it helps for the viewer to feel sympathetic with Kirino. And I'm sorry, but moral assessments are obviously going to factor in to how sympathetic many of us feel for a character. I mean, it's obviously easier to feel sorry for a character who's going through hardship when s/he's doing nothing wrong than it is to feel sorry for a character who's going through hardship when s/he spends most of his or her time being mean and nasty to other people. For a lot of us, a character like that going through hardship is called "karma" or "poetic justice".

The point of the story is that Kirino and Kyousuke have a difficult relationship and there's a lot of distance and pent-up feelings to resolve. If she weren't angry/resentful towards him, we wouldn't have an actual story and this would just be another run-of-the-mill rom-com.

Yes, I agree with you here. But she shouldn't be angry/resentful towards him all the time, imo. Because that can make it harder for the viewer to sympathize with her at all.

But then, given that the bulk (not all, but the bulk) of the comments that critique the series as a whole because they personally dislike Kirino (and I'm not saying she's not volatile/harsh) usually turn around to talk about how moe/cute they think such and such a character is, I suppose that may be what everyone's wanting.

Speaking personally, I just want some balance in Kirino's character. I want somebody that I can sympathize with; not somebody who's behavior is so bad that I find I actually want her to take a fall (which is how I felt about Kirino back in Episode 8, just like Kuroneko did).

Originally Posted by MeoTwister5

I agree. Personally I think it's still because of the (false?) assumption that a viewer must find some redeeming and humanizing character from the main cast for it to be considered "good".

I don't think that's a "false" assumption at all. It's a very valid and correct literary stance (not merely an assumption), in my opinion.

Why would anybody watch a show if the entire main cast is lacking a redeeming and humanizing character? How can you, as the viewer, sympathize with a character that is totally lacking in any redeeming or humanizing traits? Why should we care about a character like that?

Even somebody like Light Yagami has redeeming and humanizing qualities. His goals are understandable, even if his methods aren't admirable ones.

I may have hated a lot of the dynamic of between brother and sister up until say the last two episodes of sorts, but one rotten piece of the pie doesn't make the entire pie inedible.

Sure, but the entire pie would be inedible if there wasn't any redeeming or humanizing character in the entire main cast. Thankfully, there's plenty of redeeming and humanizing characters throughout this anime's cast as a whole.

Originally Posted by DJLowrider

Fantastic episode, loved it. I more or less echo what Ricky said, but I'll add a bit because I'm just that pretentious.

I think people have become far too accustomed to teenaged or even pre-teen characters in anime acting like mature adults. This series has honestly been refreshing insofar as we have characters of that age range acting, for the most part, like how kids their age actually act: petty, spoiled, flawed logic and reasoning and so on.

I have to strongly disagree.

Most teenage kids do not act as bad as Kirino as acted through out most of this anime. In fact, I didn't know a signal person in my high school (when I attended it back in the 90s) that was anywhere near as bad as what Kirino has been through out most of this anime.

In fact, it could easily be argued that Kirino's level of mistreatment towards Kyousuke is unrealistic.

While there certainly do exist exceptions to the norm of how kids in that age range act and carry themselves they are still, at best, just that: Exceptions. They are not the standard.

Kirino is not the standard for teenage girls. Not at all, from what I've seen in life.

[Ricky Controversy]

Originally Posted by Triple_R

Ricky... Kirino is the female lead of this and a protagonist. We're not talking about The Joker or Lex Luthor here. I don't get any sense that the viewer is supposed to dislike Kirino, or that she's simply some sort of obstacle for Kyousuke to overcome. For the drama of this anime to be effective, it helps for the viewer to feel sympathetic with Kirino. And I'm sorry, but moral assessments are obviously going to factor in to how sympathetic many of us feel for a character. I mean, it's obviously easier to feel sorry for a character who's going through hardship when s/he's doing nothing wrong than it is to feel sorry for a character who's going through hardship when s/he spends most of his or her time being mean and nasty to other people. For a lot of us, a character like that going through hardship is called "karma" or "poetic justice".

You misunderstand me. What I'm saying is troubling is the way people are critiquing the story as a whole just because they would do X or Y differently than Kirino. In short, people are displaying a stunted capacity for sympathy because their critiques are all coming from their own position, external to the whole situation, ignoring the fact that Kirino is a teenage girl with a hobby seen as perverse or dangerous by many, with difficult feelings towards a brother who was never there for her until recently. Does that give her a bye for her actions? No. But the way people dismiss her shows none of the sympathy crucial to good story/recipient interface.

Yes, I agree with you here. But she shouldn't be angry/resentful towards him all the time, imo. Because that can make it harder for the viewer to sympathize with her at all.

She hasn't been so far, though. Sure, she has been brusque with him, but she has also had her grateful, vulnerable moments. Her tone is often harsh, but what she says and does displays gradations of feeling that often aren't angry or resentful at all. Let's be realistic here, at the outset of the series, she and Kyousuke hadn't had any kind of relationship in years. It finally resumes under panicked, stressful terms, and all she knows is that, in being hard on, she has finally focused his attention on her. A middle-school girl in that situation is probably going to stick to what she knows works: in this case, railroading him.

Again, I am not agreeing with or condoning her actions, but that's not a prerequisite of sympathy. It's enough to be able to parse it out in your head, and I feel like people are showing a very superficial awareness by holding on to Kirino's every harsh action and saying "It's about time she apologized!" and that it "Wasn't enough" when they're perfectly willing to cheer Kyousuke on without any reference to the fact that he ignored his little sister for most of their lives. If you're going to question Kirino's development and persona, question Kyousuke's. If you're going to laud Kyousuke's victories, laud Kirino's, because a real understanding of the story puts them both in the "you made a mess, let's start cleaning it up" bin.

Speaking personally, I just want some balance in Kirino's character. I want somebody that I can sympathize with; not somebody who's behavior is so bad that I find I actually want her to take a fall (which is how I felt about Kirino back in Episode 8, just like Kuroneko did).

Again, there really is plenty to sympathize with. I don't exactly see how wanting someone to get taken down a peg precludes you from also understanding where they're coming from. We've all had to get knocked down at various points in our lives to learn our lessons, so the only reason the two couldn't be reconciled is if we expect everyone to behave like socially-accepted adults, regardless of age and circumstance. Of course, I grew up with rather distant older siblings myself, and it can have a big impact on a lot of things.

I have to strongly disagree.

Most teenage kids do not act as bad as Kirino as acted through out most of this anime. In fact, I didn't know a signal person in my high school (when I attended it back in the 90s) that was anywhere near as bad as what Kirino has been through out most of this anime.

In fact, it could easily be argued that Kirino's level of mistreatment towards Kyousuke is unrealistic.

Which raises the point that you probably didn't know them half as well as we're being allowed to know Kirino. It's not like anyone Kirino goes to school with has known about this part of her personality. It's a frustration she's only able to release to people she trusts/cares about (Kuroneko/Saori/Kyousuke) or the object of the bulk of the frustration (Kyousuke). Everyone at school knows her as this shining star of perfection. For such a person to be highly repressed to the point of volatility when she's letting herself be vulnerable is actually very realistic.

Kirino is not the standard for teenage girls. Not at all, from what I've seen in life.

Again, in her own way, she is. We're just getting to see the parts that we usually don't see in polite society.

[Hoodspirit]

enjoyable episode, too bad it suffered from the lack of time. Would have prefered it if they had put the party + ending of volume4 to the next episode and had spend more time displaying Kyousukes behaviour and some left out scenes in this one.

The episode was nearly too good in giving every Character something to do, felt like a last episode. I even had a flashback when Saori and Kureneko started to clap, hearing faint Omedeto-voices from NGE..

The mother was entertaining, with a bit more time at hand I would like to see more of her to show some similarities between her and the son. Manami was okay, it is a tough job after all to impress the family of your loved one. Didn't liked her action inside Kyousuke's room, but that is typical anime behaviour, so cannot really blame her for that.
Kureneko's manga presentation was well done, another reason to curse the lack of time, would have been worth to extend that one. Saori came a bit short, but in which episode it wasn't like that?^^;
Glad to see they managed to get Kirino's behaviour more on the realistic side again, especially in the first half. Too bad the process of her realizing that she went overboard wasn't shown, but packed episode again.
Kyousuke annoyed me today in the first half though. His social ability disappeared for no reason. Normally he would have grasped the situation and act in a de-escalationally way, but today he set up his 'disgusted face' from the beginning and provoked and teased Kirino. While his actions and reactions were understandable and expected from most persons they did not fit his usual behaviour.
In the second half it is a different story. His social ability returned miraculously, which was irritating after being left out before, with the difference that he would have had now a reason to act as strange as he did in the first half. But being back to his normal self the annoyment towards him vanished at that point (irritation grew with it though).

All in all, good that the show recovered from the episode 8 finally, the pacing is as weird as in the first episodes and characters feel more lively again. leaves hope for a good final episode and a nice online arc.

[Triple_R]

Originally Posted by Ricky Controversy

You misunderstand me. What I'm saying is troubling is the way people are critiquing the story as a whole just because they would do X or Y differently than Kirino.

Yes, that's a fair point. There's more to this anime than just Kirino. And even if the brother/sister dynamics could be executed somewhat better, they still have their strengths from time-to-time. The first five episodes were largely excellent here, as was this epiosde for the most part.

In short, people are displaying a stunted capacity for sympathy because their critiques are all coming from their own position, external to the whole situation, ignoring the fact that Kirino is a teenage girl with a hobby seen as perverse or dangerous by many, with difficult feelings towards a brother who was never there for her until recently. Does that give her a bye for her actions? No. But the way people dismiss her shows none of the sympathy crucial to good story/recipient interface.

The reader or viewer having sympathy for a major character is a two-way street, in my opinion. Yes, the reader or viewer should try to put himself or herself into the character's shoes, so to speak, and try to understand why the character does what s/he does. But it's also important for the character to be displayed with some sort of redeeming or humanizing quality, imo.

This episode likely gives me enough of that for me to sympathize with Kirino the rest of the way. Before this episode, though, I honestly found it very hard to sympathize with her.

She hasn't been so far, though. Sure, she has been brusque with him, but she has also had her grateful, vulnerable moments.

Not before this episode. She briefly thanked him once before this episode. I mean, there really have not been any significant degree of grateful, vulnerable moments for Kirino before this episode.

Now with this episode, there finally has been a significant degree of such moments.

Again, I am not agreeing with or condoning her actions, but that's not a prerequisite of sympathy. It's enough to be able to parse it out in your head, and I feel like people are showing a very superficial awareness by holding on to Kirino's every harsh action and saying "It's about time she apologized!" and that it "Wasn't enough" when they're perfectly willing to cheer Kyousuke on without any reference to the fact that he ignored his little sister for most of their lives. If you're going to question Kirino's development and persona, question Kyousuke's. If you're going to laud Kyousuke's victories, laud Kirino's, because a real understanding of the story puts them both in the "you made a mess, let's start cleaning it up" bin.

The problem here is that the historical context of their sibling relationship has only been very slightly hinted at, and there's certainly been nothing on the level of a flashback that stretches back to when Kyousuke and Kirion were much younger. Now, with more concrete historical context, I'd agree with you here.

Of course, I grew up with rather distant older siblings myself, and it can have a big impact on a lot of things.

I have two younger sisters myself, and they frankly compare very favorably to Kirino (in how they treated me vis a vis how Kirino treats Kyousuke). I'll admit that's likely influencing my take on Kirino as well.

[Saturn Beaver]

Originally Posted by Ricky Controversy

Again, I am not agreeing with or condoning her actions, but that's not a prerequisite of sympathy. It's enough to be able to parse it out in your head, and I feel like people are showing a very superficial awareness by holding on to Kirino's every harsh action and saying "It's about time she apologized!" and that it "Wasn't enough" when they're perfectly willing to cheer Kyousuke on without any reference to the fact that he ignored his little sister for most of their lives. If you're going to question Kirino's development and persona, question Kyousuke's. If you're going to laud Kyousuke's victories, laud Kirino's, because a real understanding of the story puts them both in the "you made a mess, let's start cleaning it up" bin.

Originally Posted by Triple_R

Not before this episode. She briefly thanked him once before this episode. I mean, there really have not been any significant degree of grateful, vulnerable moments for Kirino before this episode.

Now with this episode, there finally has been a significant degree of such moments.




The problem here is that the historical context of their sibling relationship has only been very slightly hinted at, and there's certainly been nothing on the level of a flashback that stretches back to when Kyousuke and Kirion were much younger. Now, with more concrete historical context, I'd agree with you here.

Yeah, exactly this. I admit, not being a teenage girl like her or knowing any teenage girl in her position makes it harder for me to be empathetic towards her. But even when I consider her from her own background, I still find it difficult to symphatize with her. You mentioned that "Kirino is a teenage girl with a hobby seen as perverse or dangerous by many, with difficult feelings towards a brother who was never there for her until recently" as part of the reasons behind her action. But really, the way I see it, the first one is pretty much a non-issue after episode 5.

At that point, her family knows and basically accepts her hobby, her best friend, while not completely accepting, at least knows about it and still remain her friends, and she even got new friends with the same interest in Kuroneko and Saori. And I don't expect her to suddenly turn into a Manami, no. But like Triple_R said, there isn't any significant difference in how she's treating him before and after to show her gratitude and appreciation to his brother for what he did (which is why the sudden change in this ep feels jarring).

What's more, about the reason that Kyousuke ignores her for her childhood. Sure, that's what we got from her, but from Kyousuke he feels that it's Kirino who has been ignoring her so far, which is why he's determined to be a good big brother now. There's no proof that Kirino can't be wrong or misunderstanding something. Not unless we see what really happen by a flashback, or at least from an account from an unrelated yet close third party (like their parents). But no, even after ELEVEN episodes, we still don't have that yet. And as such, at least until I see that, I find it hard to completely sympathize with her. That being said, this ep does greatly improves my sympathy to her, so let's hope they'll continue from there (although just one last ep makes it doubtful that it's enough time to show and properly resolve what happened, I feel we may need to wait until the 4 net episodes for that).

[Himeji]

Great episode

Mom almost catches Kyousuke playing eroge. From his hushed behaviour, she assumes he's watching porn on his sister's laptop again (well, she's not too far off there ).

In the OP, we have interesting stats for everyone:



When Manami comes over, she's very fexible and skillfully works around any of Kirino's attempts. As a reward, she can can an eyeful of his doujinshi and eroge

Spoiler for perhaps a little nsfw:

She's not fazed by that either and happily notices that he's got a glasses fetish.
btw, is it just me, or does that eroge girl looks like Haruhi with glasses?

Second half, we have the girls in meido outfits, but Kyousuke doesn't seem to really appreciate what Kirino has prepared there:


Kirino is intrigued by Kuroneko's tail and ears:



Kuroneko shows her new manga, which has Kirino sniffing at Kyousuke's shorts. Kirino is not amused by this



Finally, at the "main event", Kirino thanks Kyousuke for all he's done for her and shows her deredere side. She presents him with the eroge which she had so much fun with before



Last, we get a happy group shot of the girls together:

[bhl88]

I guess Manami doesn't know if she should be happy or angry that Kyousuke's got a glasses fetish XD (she should be happy).

Manami (reading the Nico Douga style messages): Onii-chan is a pervert who only loves little sisters...
Kyousuke: Urghh...

We don't have to wait for a second season (the ban hurts, but I can't put it here).


....

...

Wha-? Saori's as heavy as a guy... yet a supermodel... hmm.....