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Damn, he's gonna keep pulling this shit ain't he? I understand yuki/yui's reactions but that entire scene felt very lame outside of the big balls hachiman had.
The reason Yukino is disappointed was not because Hachiman was going social suicide. She didn't really say anything when he did the exact same thing in the last season.
The problem with Hachiman's method this time is that result of his action was completely different. Instead of mocking the untruthful relationship and cynically destroying it just like he did last time, he admits the needs of these superficial relationship and sacrifices himself just to maintain that. Just like Hachiman was disappointed in Yukino in the 1st season, it is now Yukino's turn to realise that Hachiman is also an imperfect human being.
Yui is also worried that Hachiman his hurting himself, which is truthful reaction as a friend. However, Hachiman is still blindfolded by his own idealism and deceiving his own feeling.
Hachiman already knows what he did was paradoxical - he is indeed the biggest liar of all. That's why he is dai-sensei.
Wow. Another excellent episode. Things are definitely progressing along nicely, and it seems like there might be a change to the status quo before long. And I never would've guessed that Ebina and Hikigaya had anything in common.
Kitchiri said: The reason Yukino is disappointed was not because Hachiman was going social suicide. She didn't really say anything when he did the exact same thing in the last season.
The problem with Hachiman's method this time is that result of his action was completely different. Instead of mocking the untruthful relationship and cynically destroying it just like he did last time, he admits the needs of these superficial relationship and sacrifices himself just to maintain that. Just like Hachiman was disappointed in Yukino in the 1st season, it is now Yukino's turn to realise that Hachiman is also an imperfect human being.
Yui is also worried that Hachiman his hurting himself, which is truthful reaction as a friend. However, Hachiman is still blindfolded by his own idealism and deceiving his own feeling.
Hachiman already knows what he did was paradoxical - he is indeed the biggest liar of all. That's why he is dai-sensei.
Some one understands me xD.
And to qoute something from the Novel: Again this is a spoiler so be WARNED ! Anime only Viewers !
“You’ve been being considerate the whole time… Ever since that time, always… That’s why…”
As I intently listened to her vanishing voice, I waited for the succeeding words. But those words wouldn’t come out as Yukinoshita said something different.
“But you don’t need to force yourself anymore. For it to be destroyed from just that only means that’s what it ultimately came down to… No?”
In the face of that question, I went silent.
That was something that I believed in, but not anymore.
However, Yukinoshita believed in it. The thing that I stopped believing in during that field trip.
I made one lie during that time. That wish of not wanting to change and them not wanting to change was distorted by that lie.
Ebina-san, Miura and finally, Hayama.
They wished for an unaltered blissful everyday life. That’s why they lied little by little, deceived each other, and by going that far, it was a relationship that they wanted to protect. Having understood that much, there was no way I could deny that so easily.
The conclusion that they came up with, the choice to try to protect what they had was something I couldn’t think of as wrong.
I incorporated them into my own self and ended up giving my approval to it. I was pleased with those days in my own way and even I started to feel disappointed in losing them.
Even though I was fully aware that they would all disappear eventually.
That’s why my beliefs became warped and I lied to myself. There was nothing to replace things that were important. Once you lost those irreplaceable things, you could never lay your hands on them a second time. Therefore, you had to protect them; that’s how I lied.
It’s not that I had protected something. I was just clinging onto the feeling of having protected something.
Just now, the question Yukinoshita shot at me was surely an ultimatum.
There was no meaning to things that were only superficial. That was a single belief that both me and her once shared.
───Did I still have that belief?
That was one great episode! Really liked it, no, loved it! Looks like Yui, Yukinon, and maybe, just maybe, Ebina have feelings for Hachiman!? I love the series.
"No matter how far you travel, you can never get away from yourself." -- Murakami Haruki
Kitchiri said: The reason Yukino is disappointed was not because Hachiman was going social suicide. She didn't really say anything when he did the exact same thing in the last season.
The problem with Hachiman's method this time is that result of his action was completely different. Instead of mocking the untruthful relationship and cynically destroying it just like he did last time, he admits the needs of these superficial relationship and sacrifices himself just to maintain that. Just like Hachiman was disappointed in Yukino in the 1st season, it is now Yukino's turn to realise that Hachiman is also an imperfect human being.
Yui is also worried that Hachiman his hurting himself, which is truthful reaction as a friend. However, Hachiman is still blindfolded by his own idealism and deceiving his own feeling.
Hachiman already knows what he did was paradoxical - he is indeed the biggest liar of all. That's why he is dai-sensei.
This made a lot of fcking sense, seriously tho how he did it this time and the last time are exact opposites, the last time ''part where he made those kids scared as fck and pretend like bullies'' this time he does the exact opposite and let them maintain that ''group for benefits'' that group has. Yes he did the RIGHT thing by saving them but that destroys his ideals that their group should be torn down since its full of lies and inconsistensy. Am I spot on or somethings a bit off? not a LN reader so Im basing this on how I saw it and how some of the other people here see's it.
However, what Hachiman fails to understand is that the rules are different now. He can't go all-in like he's used to because he actually has something to lose now, whether he likes it or not. His bonds with Yukinon and Yui, no matter how hard he tries to downplay them, is technically his most valued bargaining chip and his style of doing things undermines not his value but rather his impression of how he thinks others value him. Yui is obvious but Yukinon is slightly more complex and is a matter for their future selves to eventually work out (which will be quite messy I'm sure) but nonetheless Hachiman is looking down on the fact that there actually are others that do value Hachiman to some degree, and he's insulting them. I think he might be realizing that towards the end of the episode after his talk with Ebina but I'd imagine it would take some time for such an idea to sink into Hachiman, who's accustomed to having nothing but his self-claimed "low self-worth" on the line.
I agree with you and what I thought was really well done was the garden scene. It seems like a non factor but I thought it was a great way to remind hachiman of his social standing. With a lot more people opening up to him he seemed to, if even for a moment, have forgotten that he's generally not liked by the majority of his peers. That scene was a sort of bringing back to reality type one (if not for him, but for the viewers) and could have reminded himself or us why he does things the way he does.
VanishingKira said: I fucking knew Hiki was going to confess,always neglecting himself for the sake of others.But in return ignoring everyone else's feelings of him hurting himself for the sake of others.
Honestly think Yui handle the situation better than Yukino who went a little overboard.
Hiki seems to be changing to some degree going based on what he said at the end.
Well Yui is a nice girl and she essentially acts as the mediator in the club so that's expected as well as her hidden agenda.
And concerning Yukino, well future episodes will show why she acted the way she did.
And people really praising Hikki for his actions not knowing that the things he says is nothing more than sophistry. :)
I honestly don't get it. Ebina is such a cool person,why is she in that kind of group? That group doesn't deserve her and I don't get what friendship they're trying to protect. But then again,"humans".
Ugh,I wish they would leave Hachiman alone,he does great and doesn't need to change.
...ALL MY FEELS (>w<) I love the part that someone was finally able to relate and understand Hachiman (I want more Ebina X Hachiman) and hope the rest will understand him better...
...this episode left soooo much feels for me I had to lay down for while (*-*)
kawaii-despair said: I honestly don't get it. Ebina is such a cool person,why is she in that kind of group? That group doesn't deserve her and I don't get what friendship they're trying to protect. But then again,"humans".
Ugh,I wish they would leave Hachiman alone,he does great and doesn't need to change.
Hachiman really needs to change. The way he is (or was) works for fun and lolsies for some time, but there's no hidding that the main reason he's the way he's comes from society tormenting him since young.
He's not throwing away who he is. It's more like he's slowly getting over a severe emotional trauma. It doesn't mean he'll be all happy go lucky, he'll still be a cynical person, but without so much emotional baggage and more open to others. At least that's where I believe (and hope) he's going.
If Hachiman doesn't change, he'll be swallowed by himself sooner or later.
TyphoonS said: I hope you understand that the only reason Yukino got angry at Hachiman is because Hachiman treats himself like shit that no one cares about. He isn't thinking about Yui or Yukino. He isn't thinking of the fact that Yukino cares about him and doesn't want to see him put himself as the shitty guy who interrupted someone else's confession midway. (Which is a horrible thing to do...most effective method but not the most good one.) . Hachiman is too good of a guy. He is helping out people that aren't even that close to him all the while making himself look like the bad guy. Yukino and Yui ...being the people that care about him...don't want to see him do that anymore. It seems that Hachiman doesn't care about anyone else's feelings but his own. (In their eyes...because Hachiman keeps ignoring the fact that those 2 care about him.) . So , in short...it was not a stupid reason. She doesn't like Hachiman potraying himself as the bad guy because she cares for him. Like the teacher said in the previous episode..''It's not bad to get scolded..getting scolded means someone is looking out for you.''
No, it's definitely a stupid reason. Yukino should be more bothered about the fact that Hachiman's the only person willing to actually help Ebina rather than the fact that people look down on him, which they do anyway, with or without his input.
And lol it's not horrible to interrupt a confession that shouldn't happen. It made everyone uncomfortable and made something that everyone knew was going to end badly public. Tobe shouldn't have confessed to her where everyone was fucking watching... it's as bad as public proposals. It was pressuring her, when Hachiman helped her say what she wanted to say. Honestly, Yukino's being selfish by putting the fact that she thinks Hachiman should be respected over the feelings of numerous people, including a girl that's being pressurised to date. Besides, it's Hachiman's reputation, not her's. She doesn't own him. He's perfectly within his rights to allow himself to be perceived however he damn well pleases.
Funny, in case you don't realise, people can be flawed. Yukino's problem, among other things, clearly has to do with 8man's action being in support of the superficial relationship that both of them previously agreed on single mindedly hating.
If you want all the characters wise and insightful giving out sagely advice, then you can go watch Mahouka and indulge your petty wish fulfilment. Characters may not always act in ways agreeable to you - neither do people - it's part of what constitutes art and life.
If Yukino were to meekly stand by his side and sing his praises, then she would be no better than all waifu baits the genre is rife with.
Nice save Hachiman... well at the cost of damaging your established friendships. Wow that ending scene, haven't seen Hachiman reflect on his decision in such a manner before.
I have never been so interested in the side characters as I was in this episode.
Apparently next episode will be good so I'm definitely looking forward to that.
Next episodes gonna be full on drama BABY.
And it will hopefully convince people that Hachiman isn't really the Hero people claim him to be.
He's a socially retarded teenager who makes assumptions using logic, not understanding the feelings behind the people he helps.
Not to mention he's a Hypocrite :)
Really enjoyed this episode.Great as expected. Didn't expect someone to relate to Hachiman, I like where this is going. Didn't think I'd mind the change in Hachiman's design except no more "dead fish eyes" :(.
"As you can see, being in a group brings no advantages to the individual. Thus, I choose to be the bear, a beast that refuses to form groups with others. It’s an animal of isolation that’s not at all worried about its solitary lifestyle. Let’s not forget that bears get to hibernate as well. Oh, what a wonderful existence. If I’m ever reincarnated, I most certainly would like to be reborn as a bear."
Rewatched the episode and I have to say I really enjoyed the dialogue in this one. The whole interaction between him and Hayama mid-episode was well done. I made a mistake on my first post, the atmosphere is definitely not the same as it was in season 1. Well, it strongly resembles episode 11-12. I guess the light novel readers were correct, this season will turn out to be a lot darker. The lightheartedness from season 1 is pretty much gone. Not that I mind. Makes me want to watch the future episodes even more.
Kitchiri said: The reason Yukino is disappointed was not because Hachiman was going social suicide. She didn't really say anything when he did the exact same thing in the last season.
The problem with Hachiman's method this time is that result of his action was completely different. Instead of mocking the untruthful relationship and cynically destroying it just like he did last time, he admits the needs of these superficial relationship and sacrifices himself just to maintain that. Just like Hachiman was disappointed in Yukino in the 1st season, it is now Yukino's turn to realise that Hachiman is also an imperfect human being.
Yui is also worried that Hachiman his hurting himself, which is truthful reaction as a friend. However, Hachiman is still blindfolded by his own idealism and deceiving his own feeling.
Hachiman already knows what he did was paradoxical - he is indeed the biggest liar of all. That's why he is dai-sensei.
This.
His idealism will leave him alone if he continues like this, but somehow it looks like Hachiman started to doubt about himself.
I legitimately loved this episode! 8man and his greatness was the reason I even enjoyed the first season and I glad the second season is giving us more. I knew he'd so something like that in the end. And his banter with Hina was great. Definitely enjoying the second season.
TyphoonS said: I hope you understand that the only reason Yukino got angry at Hachiman is because Hachiman treats himself like shit that no one cares about. He isn't thinking about Yui or Yukino. He isn't thinking of the fact that Yukino cares about him and doesn't want to see him put himself as the shitty guy who interrupted someone else's confession midway. (Which is a horrible thing to do...most effective method but not the most good one.) . Hachiman is too good of a guy. He is helping out people that aren't even that close to him all the while making himself look like the bad guy. Yukino and Yui ...being the people that care about him...don't want to see him do that anymore. It seems that Hachiman doesn't care about anyone else's feelings but his own. (In their eyes...because Hachiman keeps ignoring the fact that those 2 care about him.) . So , in short...it was not a stupid reason. She doesn't like Hachiman potraying himself as the bad guy because she cares for him. Like the teacher said in the previous episode..''It's not bad to get scolded..getting scolded means someone is looking out for you.''
No, it's definitely a stupid reason. Yukino should be more bothered about the fact that Hachiman's the only person willing to actually help Ebina rather than the fact that people look down on him, which they do anyway, with or without his input.
And lol it's not horrible to interrupt a confession that shouldn't happen. It made everyone uncomfortable and made something that everyone knew was going to end badly public. Tobe shouldn't have confessed to her where everyone was fucking watching... it's as bad as public proposals. It was pressuring her, when Hachiman helped her say what she wanted to say. Honestly, Yukino's being selfish by putting the fact that she thinks Hachiman should be respected over the feelings of numerous people, including a girl that's being pressurised to date. Besides, it's Hachiman's reputation, not her's. She doesn't own him. He's perfectly within his rights to allow himself to be perceived however he damn well pleases.
Funny, in case you don't realise, people can be flawed. Yukino's problem, among other things, clearly has to do with 8man's action being in support of the superficial relationship that both of them previously agreed on single mindedly hating.
If you want all the characters wise and insightful giving out sagely advice, then you can go watch Mahouka and indulge your petty wish fulfilment. Characters may not always act in ways agreeable to you - neither do people - it's part of what constitutes art and life.
If Yukino were to meekly stand by his side and sing his praises, then she would be no better than all waifu baits the genre is rife with.
I think he's also missing the point about them caring about hachiman and being angry at his self destructive methods. I'm not sure about him, but I've had self destructive friends and it is infuriating watching them indulge in behaviour that hurts them as a person, whether socially, physically or otherwise.
Loved this episode but man I really felt bad for Hachiman specially after he got rejected, even though he supposedly faked it. I felt like his feeling were crushed. Poor Hachiman.
Hachiman is the ultimate martyr. Sure, his methods are unconventional, he still solves it nonetheless.
I liked the way Yui handled the situation compared to Yukino. Yui showed concern and compassion in her manner of confronting Hachiman. Yukino on the other hand, was too direct/hurtful.
At this point in the anime, I think he was better off being alone - No pain. He doesn't have to lie to himself. He doesn't have to belittle himself for other' sake.
Overall, GREAT EPISODE!
You can just be yourself. Do things your own way, one step at a time. You'll get there. Just be yourself, you'll be fine."
~Fruit Basket
Initially I was on the side of Hachiman for doing what no one else was willing to do, then I remembered that the one thing that set him apart was that he did not tolerate fake relationships.
I really like that he is capable of doing what no body else is willing to even at his own expense, and I also really like the fact that he is willing to do it for people he doesn't even care about, but this time, as bad ass as it was, it's disappointing. If there was any worth to protecting that shallow self serving and worthless group that would be one thing, but he knows full well how pathetic Hayama' group is, and by saving it he has himself turned into the hypocrite that Hayama's group lives by.
I admire stalwarts and martyrs, but this time he was neither, he was just a hypocrite, I hope he wakes up and realizes the grave mistake he just made.
jbeat said: Hachiman is the ultimate martyr. Sure, his methods are unconventional, he still solves it nonetheless.
I liked the way Yui handled the situation compared to Yukino. Yui showed concern and compassion in her manner of confronting Hachiman. Yukino on the other hand, was too direct/hurtful.
At this point in the anime, I think he was better off being alone - No pain. He doesn't have to lie to himself. He doesn't have to belittle himself for other' sake.
Overall, GREAT EPISODE!
I disagree, the other posts made me remember, Yukino's reaction was not only about his martyrdom imo, it was more about the fact the he was protecting something not worth protecting, he should be stand against hypocrisy and fake relationships but this time he protected it.
Yui rather is a character who keeps disappointing imo. Don't get me wrong I like her, and her actions are that of someone who truly cares for her friend. The reason why I say she is disappointing is because she is weak. Unlike Yukino she is unable to do anything but cry and worst is she does nothing to try to change that.
Looking at it from this stand point it should be quite clear to see that while harsh Yukino's reaction was warranted disapproval of Hachiman's hypocritical actions, whereas Yui's reaction is her only saying that she feels Hachiman should stop hurting himself but she herself not actually doing anything about it.
Amazing episode, made me laugh at the very beggining and i was really speechless in the very ending of it, like the first one i didn't want it to end, but nice
8man's group like his ideas; they think they are effective but they hate how he executes them. If they hate it that much then they should come up with a plan and do it better, not just say they hate it and walk away.
8man taking the dark knight's role again. Impressive yet frustrating.
You don't want someone you care about get hurt, and on 8man's case, he intentionally hurt himself. Yukino has all the reason in the world to get mad at him.
Welp, this 2 episodes now managed to persuade me to read the LN. Even if I think they did a fantastic job cramming a volume into 2 episodes, I still feel left out. I couldn't see the whole picture.
I knew Hachiman was gonna spring one off his 'all-for-the best' solution regarding Tobe's doomed to failure confession, but it still pains me how he still chooses those ways that might seem all the best for the people he's trying to help, but which in small ways hurts himself.
Many that live deserve death. And some that die deserve life. Can you give it to them? Then do not be too eager to give out death in judgement. For even the very wise cannot see all ends.
I just rewatched the episode and I think Yukino is upset because the two of them shared an unwritten mutal agreement on Hayama's group and its superficial relationship. But Hachiman's actions in this episode kind of betrayed Yukino and Hachiman's the bond between them.
This would be quite great episode in terms of pacing, dialogues and character reactions.
I liked how Hiki resolved whole conflict with no collateral damage.
I liked how Yukino went away in anger because Hiki made himself suffer.
I liked how Yui was grateful for the group but angered at the same because she loves him too and didn't wanted to see him confessing to someone else first.
I liked how Ebina disclosed her feelings to Hiki on the roof (I know it's very unlike for this seriesc but it would be kinda nice if they ended together as they understand each other pretty well)
But... when you finish this episode and realize that just about everyone in the group except Tobe knew about it you invevitably come to conclusion it wouldn't work so smoothly in real life. Because the knowing alone would be enough to shift relations in their group. They will always know and you can never pretend everytime.
Not to mention this situation was as detached from ordinary life as it could be. People are selfish beings. Noone would think of group wellbeing if there was some gain for him. Especially when romantic relations are concerned. And that's why I have some reservations for this episode.
But other than that, it was great watch, I hope next episodes would be at least this great.
Hachiman has to take so much shit for people. As soon as he confessed I felt bad for him. It's not wonder he has such a warped view of life.
But it looks like Yukino and Yui both realize what he is doing. And they don't like that he is hurting himself for others. Yui said it best, he needs to realize the feelings of other people that actually care about his own well being, namely Yui and Yukino. It is shown in the food sharing scene, and the aftermath of the confession.
The truth is Hachiman gets results though, unlike Hayato. Someone who is indecisive versus someone who takes action was ever present in the first season, and it is coming to a head now with both Hayato and Hachiman discussing there ideals. But sooner or later this is going to blow up in Hachiman's face. He can't keep being the sacrifice.
Good episode. Hachiman's dark philosophy is shown here, and people shouldn't shit on Yui and Yukino..really as Shizuka said before "Hikigaya, saving someone isn't an excuse to hurt yourself, even if you're used to the pain, you should realize there are people whose heart would break each time they see you hurt yourself''. He is basically hurting his friends too.
'Food tastes divine when you don't have to work for it'
He pretty much won there.
Hachiman's the real dude here, getting shot just to help someone, even if he doesn't care and he doesn't even get a 'Thank you', atleast from the people he wants to hear it from.
''Everyone has something they hold dear, something they never want to lose.
Thats why they pretend. Thats why they hide the truth and thats why they lie.... but.. the biggest liar of all.. was me''
-Hikigaya Hachiman
jbeat said: Hachiman is the ultimate martyr. Sure, his methods are unconventional, he still solves it nonetheless.
I liked the way Yui handled the situation compared to Yukino. Yui showed concern and compassion in her manner of confronting Hachiman. Yukino on the other hand, was too direct/hurtful.
At this point in the anime, I think he was better off being alone - No pain. He doesn't have to lie to himself. He doesn't have to belittle himself for other' sake.
Overall, GREAT EPISODE!
I disagree, the other posts made me remember, Yukino's reaction was not only about his martyrdom imo, it was more about the fact the he was protecting something not worth protecting, he should be stand against hypocrisy and fake relationships but this time he protected it.
Yui rather is a character who keeps disappointing imo. Don't get me wrong I like her, and her actions are that of someone who truly cares for her friend. The reason why I say she is disappointing is because she is weak. Unlike Yukino she is unable to do anything but cry and worst is she does nothing to try to change that.
Looking at it from this stand point it should be quite clear to see that while harsh Yukino's reaction was warranted disapproval of Hachiman's hypocritical actions, whereas Yui's reaction is her only saying that she feels Hachiman should stop hurting himself but she herself not actually doing anything about it.
couldnt agree more with this.
molassus said:
Kitchiri said: The reason Yukino is disappointed was not because Hachiman was going social suicide. She didn't really say anything when he did the exact same thing in the last season.
The problem with Hachiman's method this time is that result of his action was completely different. Instead of mocking the untruthful relationship and cynically destroying it just like he did last time, he admits the needs of these superficial relationship and sacrifices himself just to maintain that. Just like Hachiman was disappointed in Yukino in the 1st season, it is now Yukino's turn to realise that Hachiman is also an imperfect human being.
Yui is also worried that Hachiman his hurting himself, which is truthful reaction as a friend. However, Hachiman is still blindfolded by his own idealism and deceiving his own feeling.
Hachiman already knows what he did was paradoxical - he is indeed the biggest liar of all. That's why he is dai-sensei.
Some one understands me xD.
And to qoute something from the Novel: Again this is a spoiler so be WARNED ! Anime only Viewers !
“You’ve been being considerate the whole time… Ever since that time, always… That’s why…”
As I intently listened to her vanishing voice, I waited for the succeeding words. But those words wouldn’t come out as Yukinoshita said something different.
“But you don’t need to force yourself anymore. For it to be destroyed from just that only means that’s what it ultimately came down to… No?”
In the face of that question, I went silent.
That was something that I believed in, but not anymore.
However, Yukinoshita believed in it. The thing that I stopped believing in during that field trip.
I made one lie during that time. That wish of not wanting to change and them not wanting to change was distorted by that lie.
Ebina-san, Miura and finally, Hayama.
They wished for an unaltered blissful everyday life. That’s why they lied little by little, deceived each other, and by going that far, it was a relationship that they wanted to protect. Having understood that much, there was no way I could deny that so easily.
The conclusion that they came up with, the choice to try to protect what they had was something I couldn’t think of as wrong.
I incorporated them into my own self and ended up giving my approval to it. I was pleased with those days in my own way and even I started to feel disappointed in losing them.
Even though I was fully aware that they would all disappear eventually.
That’s why my beliefs became warped and I lied to myself. There was nothing to replace things that were important. Once you lost those irreplaceable things, you could never lay your hands on them a second time. Therefore, you had to protect them; that’s how I lied.
It’s not that I had protected something. I was just clinging onto the feeling of having protected something.
Just now, the question Yukinoshita shot at me was surely an ultimatum.
There was no meaning to things that were only superficial. That was a single belief that both me and her once shared.
───Did I still have that belief?
what chapter do the spoiler come from?
--
previously i watched the raw with the help of LN translation, and noticed that some dialogues between hayato and hachiman is omitted. something like hayato being selfish and hachiman dont believe it.
Hachiman monologue in LN is quite long so i feel like the director need to pick the best line that resemble most of his monologue, and for this episode it seems good.
Some parts feel rushed this episode, but still it's a nice story for anime-only viewer.
getting used to the character design, and seems better compared to the first season.
---
andddd that yukitoki feels so good that i would cry in happiness
The scene after the confession with yukino's anger and yui's tears made me a little sad as well...Hachiman why do you need to sacrifice yourself again??
Ebina and Hachiman understand each other very well...
I'm not a LN reader so I can't tell if the episode was rushed but in my opinion it was a very good episode
Hachiman was looking down on the popular kids clique. He pointed out how their friendship was too shallow to begin with if it would break apart from just one confession. However, it was not up to him to decide whether that friendship is worth keeping alive or not. It's not his group, after all. On the other hand, everyone who turned to him - Hayama, Miura and most of all Ebina - they all told him that they want to keep things as they are, that their group is precious to them. It was never about whether or not Hachiman approves of their relationship.
It's about whether or not he's willing to go all-out for them and apply his best solution, hurting himself in the process. Some people here mentioned that it's unlike Hachiman to support this kind of shallow relationship. But I wonder, did he help because he started 'approving' of it, thus betraying his own ideal?
Here's what I'm getting at: Hachiman, though he might not admit it, is an extremely nice guy. Sure, he won't mince words and he's super negative 24/7. But thinking back on Season 1, did he ever ignore anyone who needed help? Did he ever half-ass his attempts at helping people, or gave up midway through? The people he saved never had a lot to do with him. Sagami was really more of an enemy than a friend, and by all means, she definitely deserved to face the full consequences of her deeds. And yet, Hachiman sacrificed himself even for her. That's the kind of guy Hachiman is. If someone needs help, he'll help them. And he'll go all-out on it.
So I really don't think that Hachiman actually approved of Hayama's 'shallow' group. He helped Hayama's group because they asked him for help and he saved it because it was precious to its members.