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Jun 25, 8:28 AM
#1

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Nov 2011
129036
Tense episode but good flow of gameplay involving the field, bench, and the relevant guys on the field.

Whether you like Kei or not, he's showing more maturity and leadership in this episode. There's some clever camera angles and chereography used this episode too in regards to the pitching and plays. Not going to lie, this episode got me hyped for the season finale.
Jun 25, 8:28 AM
#2

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Dec 2021
2873
Eating candy while your benched in the middle of a game is actually crazy lmaooo.

Anywho, very good directing this episode. Phenomenal even. Animation also went stupid. Really love Chihaya's backstory of always getting back up no matter what happens and MAPPA directed it to perfection. Best episode thus far.

Wonder what the finale could have in store.


Jun 25, 9:26 AM
#3

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Jul 2017
14650
Chihaya's tall-standing walls against Hikawa's baseball team that wanted to recruit him but couldn't do so, it's just one problem of many, with the most vexing circumstance being Kaname reverting back to his clown-like attitude, which upsets none other than Kiyomine, even as Makita steps up to the plate to get easy bases, which Kotesashi suddenly finds themselves lagging behind quickly. The team's morale at a low, and Tsuchiya's mistakes are overlooked for the time being as the team plays catch-up, and Chihaya is still stuck facing his own personal walls.

To see Chihaya not develop like a regular human being, him literally having to outsmart the competition by playing his own style that he finds it fun, it didn't matter as long as he got the chance to play baseball and constantly improve his skills. That is until he encountered the Kaname-Kiyomine battery enough to just let life and let go, because all of his knowledge isn't worth the effort to people who had it better than him. Of course, that only helped spiral Chihaya into a downward trend without baseball and wanting to live life again, but his reason for picking up the sport once again, at the cusp of him being the critical point of winning and losing the game due to his jealousy of others, it's truly psychological manipulation to think that he sits on top of the world and only having to support himself, when the truth is that he wanted to play baseball all over again, with a team that supports him in his endeavour.

The baton has been passed from Chihaya to Kaname, trust over pride to win their game, will the latter keep his promise?
Jun 25, 9:37 AM
#4

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Mar 2013
515
Animation quality increased quite a bit this episode compared to earlier ones. Also seems to be more of a Shaft-esque animation style, I guess they're trying new things? Or did they get someone new to work on this episode?
Jun 25, 9:45 AM
#5

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Jun 2019
6584
Holy mother of GOD-tier episodes. What a beautiful episode. My goodness. I knew that this episode was important and really amazing in the original but I didn't expect them to go this hard in this episode. It was perfection.

This whole episode was beautiful. I related to Chihaya on a personal level and it made me tear up as well. I loved it so fucking much. I love this show so much. So pretty. So beautiful. Brilliantly directed and storyboarded by Tokumaru-san. It was more than anything I ever imagined for this episode. On to the last episode of the season. I don't want this show to end.
Jun 25, 10:03 AM
#6

Online
Mar 2021
1856
Really loved the Backstory of Chihaya and his past issues with baseball and overcoming them. This show has been such a pleasure to watch and I can't wait for the finale next week.
Jun 25, 10:14 AM
#7

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Oct 2009
695
HOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOLY................ how do you rate an episode perfect when you'd already rated all previous episodes perfect (for various reasons)??? MAL, help me out here.

I knew I was going to be blown away when I saw the preview last week, but HOT DAMN, I'm blown away. This was absolute perfection. Such a deep dive into Shun, and the entire episode's narration style is just really a bonus (THANK YOU, Shimazaki-san!) - instead of random flashbacks, it's the character himself baring his soul at a pivotal moment, taking a hard look at himself and how he got to where he is. With issues that are so real, I'm sure many of us were clutching our chests at one point or another. And then zooming out from that perspective into how his former teammates saw him vs how his current team sees him, with Makita as a focal point... Works beautifully with the all the sharp cuts, the incredible variety of perfectly common locations, and all the unique-angle dynamism the camera did this episode. Just. Phenomenal. Thank you. More of this please.

Fwiw, in case people are wondering, feeling things being different, it's worth checking out this tweet from director of photography Kawashita Yuki. And this and this from Mikawa-san. (Additionally, take a look around, there are several interesting titbits all over.)

yellowheartrenJun 25, 10:17 AM
Jun 25, 11:11 AM
#8

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Apr 2023
138
Oh my, what an absolutely beautiful episode this was! Loved loved loved the directing and animation, and it was very satisfying to see Chihaya break down the walls he'd been avoiding. Also loved how he responded the same as Todo to Kei's question earlier this season.

I will be very sad when this show ends next week and I'm hoping for a season 2 announcement!
Jun 25, 11:53 AM
#9
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Jul 2021
453
Dignity said:
Animation quality increased quite a bit this episode compared to earlier ones. Also seems to be more of a Shaft-esque animation style, I guess they're trying new things? Or did they get someone new to work on this episode?

The episode was directed and storyboarded by Masahiro Tokomaru, who is also the Action director for all 12 episodes of Oblivion Battery along with Junpei Tatenaka. Yuki Kawashita is the director of photography for all 12 episodes, Kawashita-san is from a graphics company named MADBOX. So no, no one from Shaft worked on this episode. This was all the same staff that was there for last 10 episodes. This episode was simply the priority episode for them.
Jun 25, 11:58 AM

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Nov 2020
158
Production this episode was stellar! The animation was so dynamic all throughout, making for a really pleasant and engaging viewing experience!

Chihaya's backstory almost made me cry, not something I could've imagined this anime could've made me feel going into it.
FiornoJun 25, 12:02 PM
I have read 2 perfect chapters of manga; They are Usogui Chapter 203 and Onani Master Kurosawa Chapter 23.
Jun 25, 12:47 PM
Ero Ojisan

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Jun 2019
5239
So it wasn't just Chihaya's lack of physical presence that was holding him back, but it was the lack of trust in others that prevented him from connecting with his old teammates which created an inferior complex despite being the best player on that team stat wise. I thought Chihaya was going to knock it out of the park, but he chose to be walked to first base leaving the game in Kei's hands.
Jun 25, 2:17 PM
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Apr 2024
156
Man what a great episode, Chihaya's story is very dense man everything he suffered to try to play something he loves and suffering a lot for it and he adapts to his physique and in the end he is defeated by the battery, but he puts the general to win this game and let's see if Kaname will be able to come to his senses and win.
Jun 25, 2:28 PM
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Oct 2020
3532
best episode so far? Looking forward to the next one.
Jun 25, 3:20 PM
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Aug 2020
3341
i really enjoyed this ep

to see what happened to him etc

that the ex partner just wanted to play with him, it was really nice
otakuweek on insta for News /recom etc

just have a look, you won't regret it...
Jun 25, 5:07 PM

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May 2014
22
I'm dizzy with this animation. And I don't understand the need to put so many quick transitions in a row per minute, I hope the next chapter returns to normal.
Jun 25, 6:56 PM
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Jun 2016
56
Dude I want to know who directed this episode. Every frame a painting 0.0
Jun 25, 8:23 PM

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May 2019
2714
Pretty good episode that focused on Chihaya's backstory and the struggles he had to overcome, notably the lack of confidence in his own physique and not trusting in his teammates. Speaking of which, I have no idea how Kei will do in his at-bat but if he doesn't show any of the "commander" part... well maybe he'll get walked too? 🤷‍♂️
Jun 25, 9:28 PM

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Aug 2015
188
the animation on this episode is UNREAL
Jun 25, 10:33 PM

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Jun 2011
263
the animation quality

HOLYYYYY

this is one of the best episodes for this series omg
Jun 26, 1:04 AM

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Mar 2007
1480
10/10 episode, the best one yet.

Good story with profound character development.

And then the animation ... whoo Mappa is really cooking with this. Everything sakuga, nice, fluid, looks realistic, great angle, just smooth AF. Very impressed, That's some high quality work right there. Amazing.

Why aren't more people watching this series?

Jun 26, 9:09 AM
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Feb 2020
4
The music and the animation were so good!
Jun 26, 9:41 AM
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Feb 2019
32
Reply to MahoRyoka
I'm dizzy with this animation. And I don't understand the need to put so many quick transitions in a row per minute, I hope the next chapter returns to normal.
@MahoRyoka i think that's part of the, like, cinematic aspect of it all ?? those first few minutes after the opening was disorienting & fast bc that's probably how the characters are feeling. like, if you try & try to do something but keep messing up (& feel embarrassed about it) somehow you also get that upsetting yet dizzying feeling.

i feel like the quick transitions is also used as a way to, like, visualize the fast pace of baseball itself. baseball isn't a slow sport. i think it was so fast & disorienting to the audience bc that's how it felt to the characters.

personally i'm obsessed with this episode & its animation.
Jun 26, 3:03 PM
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Mar 2019
11
Holy shit I though this episode quality was insane
Jun 26, 7:29 PM
Pirate King
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Feb 2021
600
Really loved this episode. Getting to see all these backstories is really awesome. Hopefully next weeks finale will end with a bang 🙌
Jun 26, 10:30 PM
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Jan 2020
1986
This gotta be the best episode of 2024
Jun 26, 11:12 PM

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Oct 2022
620
I guess it's confirmed now that he's faking being stupid. He's been pretending he had no memories from when he was stupid/smart. However he remembered Chihaya was upset since the beginning of match, but he was in commander mode back then.
Jun 27, 3:58 AM
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May 2012
4
I don't know who directed this episode, but it looks like the style of the director of the flashback episode of JJK S2 Geto.
Jun 27, 11:15 AM
🥊 CHAMPION 🥊

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Apr 2016
23516
Chihaya up the "wall"!
Kei has the key!!!
kekeke
Jun 27, 1:47 PM
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Jun 2019
33
I didn't liked this anime at first but last episodes have been great!
This one is the best episode ever in any anime I've watched, no kidding!
Not only the animation was amazing (as always) but the composition of the frames, the pacing, the music and the story were perfect. It was an emotional and intense episode.
Chihaya has become my favourite character now.
I lack the words to explain how this episode made me feel (English is not my first language) but I got moved by all the effort and pain Chihaya went trought to do something he loves! And I'm happy he started to face his walls.
Jun 28, 11:38 AM

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Mar 2015
8
The directing in this episode is different from previous episodes. The camera angles, movement, and editing...a unique episode. The nice thing is that this is fit with the theme of the story in the episode, as it focuses on the psychological aspects, internal conflicts, and the state of tension.
It may be the least funny episode of the season, but it is definitely one of the best.
Jun 28, 3:55 PM
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Mar 2020
1
Amazing episode. The music, animation, transition and storytelling were all on point. This was movie-quality stuff and caught me by surprise a lot of the time. The manga is already great, so I am glad that this was done justice.
Jun 29, 1:54 AM

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Jan 2017
476
Chihaya didn't strike to me as a prideful person but I guess if someone's really such a smart-ass like him, it's natural to get conceited at some point in your life. I'm happy that he had overcome his walls and learned to trust his teammate in the end 🖤

P.S. At first, the setting transitions in this episode kinda made me dizzy. Still it was animated pretty well so I really don't wanna complain...
Jun 29, 3:40 AM

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Apr 2011
1654
This episode has no right looking this good!
Jun 29, 6:13 AM

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Oct 2017
27106
Another impactful episode and the animation/motion was really good. Chihaya overcame his wall.
Jun 30, 4:24 PM

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Oct 2019
128
Chihaya is my favorite of the group so I'm stoked that his backstory episode turned out this amazing, holy cow. His internal conflict and the way it was presented felt incredibly real and painful, the way this show handles psychological character exploration really hits for me man. Not to mention the animation and baseball game choreography was just gorgeous.
Jul 1, 9:32 AM

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Jun 2008
5016
Chihaya daisuki ❤

Top notch animation right here.

watching, waiting, commiserating
Jul 3, 11:26 AM
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Apr 2018
2
one of the peak animation from mappa
Jul 3, 9:03 PM
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Jun 2007
9
what the fuck just happened this was UNREAL
Jul 6, 11:05 AM

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Mar 2015
736
This was a damn beautiful episode. From the storytelling to the animation and music.

2/2 "I do!". I love that part.
Jul 11, 8:55 AM
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Oct 2018
5
i cant believe im here writing this but i really love chihaya back story and i can relate with him about what he's going through T.T i cried on the beach scene and good job for shimazaki-san i can really felt the frustation in the voice
Jul 12, 2:04 PM

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Aug 2019
1688
Wow. From beginning to end this episode is filled with impressive visuals and animation. It's a shame I don't care too much about the story and this series did lose me with how the whole amnesia plotline is handled, but I'll have to rewatch this episode just to fully appreciate it even more. Stunning work!
Jul 13, 8:22 AM

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Oct 2011
239
Even if they are loosing, the sequence showing the match was sooo good.

He really just said "You've been looking down since we arrived" like hmmm, I thought you didn't remember hmmmmmm.

Can't believe it's almost over.
Jul 27, 12:28 PM

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Jun 2014
7419
Night and day difference in the quality of the previous episodes and this one. Animation aside, Chihaya overcoming his pride and past insecurities was a thing of beauty to witness. I always enjoy episodes in anime like this one, where we see a character's story come to a resolution like this.
People on MAL refuse to actually enjoy watching anime.

Your taste in anime isn't a personality trait.

MAL is literally just anime Twitter as its own website lol.


Jul 29, 6:09 PM
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Jan 2021
1
The animation was some of the best of the series, the storyline was entertaining, and Chihaya's storyline was good too
Sep 19, 8:46 AM

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Oct 2018
2722
An episode primarily hyped for the animation ceiling for the show's standard, but it offers so much more than that. Condensing Chihaya's story into just one episode (unlike Toudou's 6+7) makes it stand out in its own way accompanied by the sharp editing. One of the best of the year.

Oct 6, 11:59 PM

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Jul 2012
1879
I liked the dynamic transitions used in this episode. Even if it was a bit excessive, there was intention and meaning behind it. Got to appreciate the artistic approach in the directing.

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