English Dub Review: Adachi and Shimamura “High School Girls On Holiday”

Overview (Spoilers Below):

Shimamura sinks to the bottom of a pool, reflecting on how heavy her body feels underwater. Yashiro blocks a kid from passing in front of her, until outwitted by the human.

Shimamura and her mom work out at the gym. Her mother chides her for not making the most of the free trial before asking if she’s been skipping school. Shimamura deflects by saying she leaves on time every day.

At the gym’s pool, she lets herself sink underwater while thinking about how brilliantly blue Adachi’s eyes are. When she gets out, she encounters a lady who initiates a conversation with, “Hey, I don’t like you kid” before another club member reveals she’s Adachi’s mom.

As Shimamura listens to her friend’s mom vent in the spa about her daughter’s lack of communication, she’s compelled to stand up for her friend. She challenges Ms. Adachi to see who can stay in the sauna the longest. If she wins, she wants Ms. Adachi to “be a good mom, even for a day.” Ms. Adachi asks her what that would look like, before letting Shimamura win the contest.

At school, Adachi reveals that her mother ate dinner with her the night before. She notes that it was an uncommon occurrence, and felt awkward. But she relents it was a bit nostalgic.

That weekend, the two head to karaoke with Nagafuji and Hino. The group has nicknamed their newest addition “Dadachi”, which she’s not exactly a fan of. On the way back home, Shimamura asks Adachi to stop at a park so they can chat. She buys her a drink, and apologizes that there’s no mineral water. She asks Adachi if she wanted to tell her something earlier, since their eyes met so often at karaoke.

Adachi asks Shimamura to pat her on the head. After considering it for a moment, Shimamura does just that, lending the two a sweet moment of connection before ending the day. Adachi reflects on how she wants to be important to Shimamura.

Our Take:

Some new characters this episode! Adachi’s mom has some serious Faye Valentine vibes, although that may be partially due to sharing a VA (Wendee Lee) with the famed Cowboy Bebop femme fatale.

Rebeka Thomas (who’s soothing voice provided a rare bright spot  in The Irregular at Magic High School as Sylvia Mercury First) also joins the cast as Ms. Adachi’s friend and fellow health club member, Shimada.

Matt Corcoran (Angelo’s Father in Arte) also dropped a few lines in as poolside pervert, Hanasaki.

While the title of this episode seemed to imply the group would be going on a trip together, I’m glad it took a more subtle route. It appears to be either fall or winter break, based on the scarves and cooler weather outfits. Despite school have potentially slowed down for the season, both Shimamura and Adachi’s mothers are concerned with their daughter’s dedication to their studies.

It’s interesting to me that Shimamura is able to easily brush aside criticism directed towards her, but was spurred to action when Adachi was the one being talked about. Her assertion that Ms. Adachi doesn’t understand her daughter because she doesn’t try to connect with her is bold as hell, and while the results are awkward at first, she feels confident it was the right call, even saying that things don’t change overnight. It’s a sweet, if tense moment, and will likely serve as a point for comedic effect when she meets Adachi’s mom officially.

From this point forward in the episode, things are basically as cute as the new outfits the main cast sports. Lighthearted karaoke and the new “Dadachi” nickname from Hino and Nagafuji provide a backdrop for Adachi’s reflections on how she prefers to be alone with Shimamura, and senses that Shimamura feels the same way.

Although Shimamura is a bit more adept at social situations, Adachi is right in her assumptions. Not only is this confirmed by their swingset chat, but it proves how in sync the two really are with each other.

Being adopted by a friend group, while still not exactly feeling like you belong is a surprising topic to explore with anime. The subtle sense of conflict between what you actually want to do, what you “feel” like you should do, and what you think the rest of the group wants perfectly mirrors the lack of clarity in Adachi and Shimamura’s relationship at this point. It’s also relatable in a bittersweet way that really allows you to connect with the characters.

In the end, Adachi’s request to “Please, keep inviting me! I still had fun.” shows how much she wants to spend time with Shimamura, even if it’s not just the two of them. The hair stroking scene is also very sweet, although a little saccharine for my tastes (I don’t know what y’all get out of headpats, but like, enjoy!)

Overall a solid episode that sets things up for more interesting developments along the way. There’s plenty to explore, and I’m excited to see where the rest of this series goes.