Blue Box Episode 6 - Hina Falters

Blue Box episode 6 was released this week, marking the first cour’s halfway point. Tensions are rising as Taiki continues to deal with his crush on Chinatsu, Hina starts to feel the pressure of high expectations, and all three of them are constantly focused on their respective sports. By now, we’ve all figured out that Hina is suppressing her crush on Taiki despite trying to help him win over Chinatsu. In this episode, the pressure builds up to a point where Hina can’t completely dedicate herself to making nationals. This episode proves Hina to be Blue Box’s most interesting character.

Wish Me Luck

Something I realized about Blue Box while watching this episode is that every single character so far has nothing but the best intentions. Chinatsu is focused on basketball, and for her to accomplish her goals she needs to stay with Taiki’s family while her family is abroad. She has no bad intentions in living with Taiki and even explains this to herself over and over when she starts to realize that Hina and Taiki look like they’d be a cute couple.

The same can be said for Hina – she wants what is best for Taiki and even Chinatsu, and feels a sense of guilt about her feelings for him. Many times in anime we see characters with the worst intentions and selfish desires, so I find it new and refreshing that Blue Box characters are written in a different way.

In Blue Box episode 6, Hina finally finds out that Taiki and Chinatsu are living together. There are no tears or vitriol during this scene, just shock, and Taiki calmly explains the situation to Hina. However, this knowledge distracts Hina from her goal – to make nationals in gymnastics. Many layers of expectations weigh heavy on her shoulders. Her father was a famous gymnast, she is constantly overachieving in practice, she has had interviews for newspapers, and the entire student body places her talents on a pedestal. The pressure builds up, and even Taiki starts to notice that she isn’t her usual self.

Hina doesn’t even seem to be honest with herself about her feelings about Taiki. She wants to keep that friendship and doesn’t seem to want to take a risk by exploring romantic feelings with him. Fortunately, after an almost disastrous fall, Hina and Taiki get to talk about their (non-romantic) feelings related to sports, and Hina does end up making nationals.

How long can each character stay so humble? Chinatsu recognizes that her living with Taiki could get in the way of Hina pursuing a relationship, so Chinatsu reassures herself that her living situation is only for the sake of basketball. Hina is just as humble as she tries to suppress her feelings for Taiki so that Chinatsu may pursue him. Will there be a breaking point? Which character will be the first?

I’m sure the pressure will continue for all three of our main characters as nationals grow closer and the trio continues to figure out their complicated feelings. Blue Box is currently streaming on Netflix.

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© Kouji Miura /SHUEISHA/ Blue Box Film Partners