After-School Hanako-kun episode 3 showed two interesting scenes. First was the type of cold that only apparitions could catch; second, the introduction of the adorable youngest sibling of the Minamoto brothers, Tiara, and their adopted Mokke, Fairy Minamoto.
The first scene begins with Nene Yashiro taking care of the sneezing Hanako lying in a hospital bed with all his colors faded. Then, Tsuchigomori, who was also sick, came and explained that apparitions could also catch colds and that this could weaken their form. This explained why the seventh wonder appeared more transparent than usual. Hanako seemed to be delighted by this and went outside the infirmary to inform Kou that he had gotten sick for the first time in decades. Nene worriedly chased after him only to see him all beaten up. The Mokke, on the other hand, saw this as a chance to get a seat among the seven wonders and attempted their murderous plan of killing Hanako while he was in his weakened state. However, their plan failed.
The second part started with an exhausted Mokke walking away from school. Fortunately, Tiara saw it, took it home, and asked Teru if he could help clean it. The Mokke this time had a slightly different appearance from the usual Mokke since it was fluffier and had a lighter shade of pink. Tiara told the Mokke that it would become her slave and then proceeded to show her family. She grabbed Mokke’s ears then went to where Kou was, then to Teru’s room. Tiara seemed to adore her big brother a lot as the scene showed a dreamy ambiance. Meanwhile, Mokke was so scared at the sight of this handsome exorcist as he woke up. It ran away and bumped into a big apparition. Luckily, it was saved by Tiara who invited it back home.
After-School Hanako-kun episode 3 offered a fresh perspective on the apparitions by showing that they can catch a cold, which was quite intriguing since they appeared weak. It was new to me as I was used to them being energetic and giving off powerful vibes in the main storyline. Initially, I was a bit unsatisfied when I saw a sick Hanako, as he appeared almost colorless, but it made sense when Tsuchigomori told Nene that he was a ghost to begin with so he would appear more transparent than usual. What saved this part for me was the comedic moment of Hanako who mistook Nene’s legs for a fire extinguisher, and Mokke’s comical attempted murder. Additionally, Kenjiro Tsuda did an excellent job voicing Tsuchigomori making the character sound genuinely ill; even his coughing made my throat feel dry.
What caught my attention in this episode was Tiara and Fairy Minamoto’s introduction. Tiara really looked like the combination of his two brothers. She has Teru’s hair color and Kou’s teeth. Her personality also matched with Kou who is always full of energy. However, her exorcism power was even more powerful than Teru’s when she quickly exorcised the horrendous apparition that almost took Fairy away. This apparition appeared to have a slightly different art style compared to how other apparitions were illustrated before. It looked as if it could appear outside the screen and haunt me.
On the other hand, I liked how Misaki Kuno gave life to Tiara’s character. The child’s personality was full of excitement and energy, and she also possessed an explosive power – which was very similar to one of the voice actress’ notable roles, Klee from Genshin Impact.
This episode was well-balanced and ridiculously adorable. The first part was quite chaotic while the second half was explosively wholesome. Hanako never missed a chance to mock Nene’s appearance. This did somehow offend our female protagonist, but I could not deny that despite Hanako’s playful side, Nene would always worry about him. Well, the Mokke would never stop stealing the spotlight as they always shower every episode with cuteness.
Meanwhile, Teru’s taunting face was really something. Who would’ve known that this handsome guy with a nice and calming aura was actually very intimidating to apparitions? But then, he automatically calmed down and changed his expression at the sight of his little sister. That aside, Tiara and Fairy made a cute duo as both had a charming appearance outside while bearing a strong identity inside. Tiara was a powerful exorcist at a very young age and Fairy was a Mokke who, apparently, wanted to wreak havoc. However, I was kind of worried about Fairy as the child seemed to love grabbing its ears tightly and it seemed really horrified at the presence of Tiara’s older brothers.
With the ridiculously adorable duo introduced, I hope I will get to see more of their moments together. Therefore, I rate After-School Hanako-kun episode 3 a 7/10.
Screenshots via Crunchyroll
© AidaIro / SQUARE ENIX, After-School Hanako-kun Project