Free! – 07
This week on Free!: Rin does LSD
It’s my turn! Yep, smack in the middle of the season, I get the first competition episode for Free! So heading into the Prefectural Tournament, let’s see what’s going to happen?
Rin Gets Selfish
“I love you, Rin-senpai!”
This is pretty much the whole theme of this episode. We’ve known that Rin is completely hung up on Haru beating him, so despite having multiple strokes he’s good at, he only is entered in a single event: the 100m Freestyle, the only event Haru is going to be in (well, for now I’m guessing, but we’ll get to that later). He’s so caught up in it, that Aiichiro, who is really striving for the “Most BL Character in Free!” title, cause he’s seriously got a crush on Rin, is upset at him for taking a spot in the event he wants to be in (even though he’s apparently not good enough at it).
Just out-touched
But all Rin wants is to beat Haru. And I was kind of surprised the show didn’t keep us in any suspense, having their matchup in the prelims (when Rin said he had hung back on his qualifying times to get matched up with him), which is won, barely, by Rin, who immediately lets it go to his head. He stands on the poolside, saying “I beat you, and I’m never racing you again!” Seriously? What a dick. Maybe he thinks he’s all that and a bag of chips, but either they’re ignoring the way swim meets work, or Rin’s barely even a prefectural class swimmer in 100 free. They were saying that the top 8 times advance. Rin beat Haru by something like a 10th of a second, and yet Haru doesn’t advance to the final and Rin does? According to the board, Rin is the 5th fastest in the finals (this also means that heat 4 was full of absolute scrubs, cause they crushed those guys). And even if he thinks he’s done with Haru, I’m going to guess that Rin’s going to see him again in the final, because the show will make up some reason for Haru to go there (DQ another guy, review of times, injury, something). Really the only way that Rin would never swim against Haru again is if he never does freestyle ever.
Jerk lessons from Rin
The Rest of The Club
Ama-chan always looks so relaxed
Since they ran the 100 free first, what we got from the rest of the crew is that they’re all in individual events, but no medley relay, probably because Haru didn’t want to. But now, Rei is interested in being in the relay, Nagisa always wants to do a relay, and Makoto will go along with just about anything Nagisa wants. So I’m going to guess they’ll end up in the medley relay as well, even if they haven’t signed up for it. Or maybe I’m wrong, and they’ll just wait until the next tournament for that.
Some detailed notes there
Other than that, tho, the start of the meet was pretty interesting, with some good atmosphere and with Kou-chan ogling all the guys. Amakata-sensei also came to ogle guys, albeit with more tact than Kou, as usual. But Kou has to get some credit for all her scouting work of the other teams, even if she didn’t just do it out of a sense of duty to the swim club.
Free! Fun Fotos!
The competition between Haru and Rin was surprising that it was this early, and also surprising that Rin acted like such a jerkoff after it was over. I get that he’s a moody guy, but that was pretty atrocious of him. And I don’t know why he thinks he’s so good, since it looks like he was really stretched in just barely beating Haru. I think we’ll probably see a comeback by Haru at some point.
About Highway
Proving that you don't have to be young to love anime, I enjoy all genres and styles of shows. If it's not hurting anyone else, you should never be ashamed of what you like!
POWUH: and LOLi Defender with 10997 comments
All Hail Freeway!
POWUH: Occasional (51-75) with 58 comments
Sensei and her parasol Haru > Makoto > Nagisa >>> Rin. Rei because he’s a total dweeb, I don’t like Haru that much as a person but he’s the source of all the best jokes, I love Makoto but he’s not that entertaining (and his shoulders are too big for a high-schooler! it looks weird!!) and I’m not a huge fan of Nagisa’s genki personality.
The red-haired captain is my favorite appearance-wise though, what a cute *w*
POWUH: Meta Team and Spammy Tamer with 7115 comments
I like the other captain, he seems like a good guy throughout the series. Maybe he’ll get the guts to ask Kou-chan out on a date.
POWUH: and Vampire Lover with 11746 comments
So Highway is directing the fangirls this time. I still expect you to maintain law and order!! Remember: there are fujoshis stalking this show. 😀
The contrast between Haru and Rin is huge and I can understand now why Rin is so fixated on beating him. Seeing someone who has remarkable talent in something but has no ambitions to improve or make use of what they have while you’re working hard to get better would definitely boil your blood. It’s a frustrating paradox which makes it look unfair to those who improve with hard work.
Those were some photos Kou took. I’m still a bit surprised that she denied using sex appeal to get what she wanted when Nagisa was about to ask what she did to do so. For a girl, I thought she’d like the idea. And she’s swooning again. I’d love using her as a reference if anyone makes a remark about guys swooning over hot girls. We finally got some ammunition and now we’re on equal grounds!
A Pocket Sweat can. I haven’t seen something like since watching Ben-To. Now I’m wondering if Free! isn’t using some of Ben-To’s staff because of this little easter egg.
POWUH: and LOLi Defender with 10997 comments
…yeah, but isn’t Haru in danger of becoming a Oreki expy?
POWUH: and LOLi Defender with 10997 comments
Any reference to Ben-to is Gold. Solid Fuckin’ Gold. That show needs so much more love….
POWUH: Meta Resident and LN Informant with 1529 comments
Thats the one where they’re all wuxia fighting over cheap bento boxes right?
POWUH: and Vampire Lover with 11746 comments
Warrior societies and full on brawls in the supermarkets for half priced Ben-Tos? Yep, that’s the one. These two clips will help put things in perspective:
Ben-to: Satou & Wizard VS Boar and The Tempest
Ben-to: Ice Witch VS Beauty by the Lake
POWUH: Meta Team and Spammy Tamer with 7115 comments
Pocket Sweat is better than some other show I saw this week with “Pukari Sweat”.
POWUH: and Vampire Lover with 11746 comments
Somehow that sounds disgusting and I can’t fully explain why it does.
POWUH: and Athenaeum Châtelaine with 2212 comments
Once again, not all girls like to be thought of getting what they want through sex appeal. Some are more modest, and some want it to be known that they got it though their own merit. And knowing how independent Gou is, I’d say it’s a mixture of both on her part.
And I thought it was always understood that girls swooned over hot guys? How do you think fujoshi exist? Or bishies for that matter? Us girls just aren’t as blatant as the guys in our admiration of the male form…well, at least most of the time. 😛
POWUH: and Vampire Lover with 11746 comments
So you’re saying that you’re just repressed and sneaky. Interesting revelation. 😉
POWUH: and Athenaeum Châtelaine with 2212 comments
Nooo…more like expertly employing a balance of subtlety and couth where the male form is concerned. 😉
Again…that’s most of the time. 😀
POWUH: and Vampire Lover with 11746 comments
Riiight….. I’ll take your word for it. 😉
POWUH: Meta Team and Spammy Tamer with 7115 comments
Hey, there are some guys who drag the average down for the rest of us (like my boss who went to Catholic School and now has to comment on almost every woman he sees).
POWUH: Meta Resident and LN Informant with 1529 comments
This week’s end card:
http://free-anime.wikia.com/wiki/File:Free!_Episode_7_End_Card.png
A naked Captain appears in the showers!
Fangirls receive 999 damage!
Also, that was a cold-blooded move on Rin’s part.（￣へ￣）
My predictions for next week:
Gou/Nagisa: ONIICHAN/RIN-CHAN BAKAAAAAAAAAAAAA———-!!!!!!! ヽ(´□｀。)ﾉ
Makoto: How could you, Rin?(◞‸◟)
Mikoshiba: You made Gou-kun cry!!!ლ(ಠ益ಠ
POWUH: and Athenaeum Châtelaine with 2212 comments
This is one of the best episodes the show has had to offer so far. Rin still is one of my favorite characters, and to see what really makes him tick is particularly fascinating. Who would have guessed that his father was one of the ones who died during the same storm that killed Makoto’s mentor and scarred him for life? Also, do the others know about Rin’s dad? I thought he mentioned in the beginning that he was going to Australia with his father who was traveling on business? How can that be, if chronologically, his father would have died already at this point? Was he lying? In any case, I’m guessing that no one other than his roommate, knows why Rin is as determined as he is and why he went into swimming in the first place.
The nightmare sequence in the beginning was pretty creepy, especially the symbolism of the goldfish and how the swimming shadows changed upon the floor. I think this episode’s introspection of Rin, shows in fact why he beat Haru in the end. While Haru has raw talent and a love for his craft, he’s not driven nor determined, not in the way Rin is. Unlike Haruka, Rin is fighting for something, he has a goal in mind and he won’t let anything or anyone get in his way. Unfortunately, that includes his childhood friendship.
As to the competition itself, the race was quite energetic (and I could have sworn I’ve heard some of that techno music in a commercial before?) and you could feel the intensity going on. However, of course, this only being halfway through the series, Rin wins the race against Haru. I kind of knew that would happen considering the character development Rin got this episode. However, I do think that he took it a little too far when he goaded his win over Haru and claimed that he would never swim with him again. It was that statement, rather than the win itself that crushed Haru.
For the last few episodes, being able to swim together was synonymous with the bonds of friendship shared between these five boys. For Rin to state what he did, is effectively breaking off his friendship with Haruka which Haru cherishes even more than he is willing to openly admit.
What will happen in the episodes to come? Well obviously this show is about both swimming and friendship. This competition will more than likely end in a relay race where they will have to depend on their camaraderie and their bond as friends to win, as well as their skill.
Also, obviously Rin and Haru will mend their relationship, but the question is how? Will Rin realize that friendship is more important than trying to follow his father’s dream? Will he try to get a dream of his own? Will Haru finally become driven enough to fight to regain the friendship of his childhood
soulmatefriend? We have 5 more episodes to go to see what happens next. I give this episode an 8.7/10.POWUH: Meta Team and Spammy Tamer with 7115 comments
I think that Rin has been uninterested in friendship for years. For whatever reason, he’s taken his father’s abandonment of swimming as some sort of personal affront to “doing your best”, just like Haru’s lack of commitment to training is. I haven’t seen anything from Rin this whole series that he actually thinks friendship with Haru, Makoto, or Nagisa is any value worth anything. That’s why he left to go to Australia (my impression was that he barely told anyone about it even), that’s why he didn’t bother to come back and say hi when he got back into town. If a relationship is two people, then there’s no relationship to mend here, because one of the people doesn’t care at all about the other person, just that he was a goal to beat.
Basically, I think Rin’s a jerk, he’s been a jerk the whole series, and he really shows it here.
POWUH: and Athenaeum Châtelaine with 2212 comments
Oh, I don’t think that at all. It’s all about what goes unsaid. Haru doesn’t seem the type to hang around or care about a person to that degree if the feelings weren’t reciprocated. Also, Rin wouldn’t have been this emotional or serious about beating Haru if there hadn’t been a connection there. Also again, remember that Rin knows many things about Haruka and friends that they don’t share with just anyone. Rin was friends with them at least during childhood, however it was in their recent lives, Rin has changed, and though he still holds an emotional bond with Haruka, that bond of friendship has been overtaken by his desire to complete his goals no matter the cost.
Yes, Rin acts like a bit of a jerk here, however they balanced that this episode by showing us why he acts the way he does. Characters like him, I never take at face value. Sure he acts like a jerk at times, but we also see that he can be kind at times and that he cares in his own way about his former comrades. If he never cared, he would have never have been worried about them out there on the beach, and he would have never have expressed worry about Makoto and his fear of the ocean. If he didn’t care he wouldn’t be so emotional or angry that he can’t beat Haru.
Rin is a complicated character with layers, which is why he tends to be my favorite character.
POWUH: Lovely-pyon~ with 318 comments
I think we’re getting more and more emotions from Haruka.
But really, how did Haruka loose? did he do that on purpose? For Rin?
Why did Rin say such mean things?
Come on! Give me the next episode already T__T
XDDD Check out what my friend found http://31.media.tumblr.com/bd2fef0017add30eb48a74383f0a6dce/tumblr_mrwdxgBW1K1r3b4zpo1_250.gif
POWUH: Meta Team and Spammy Tamer with 7115 comments
I doubt Haru lost on purpose, especially since he didn’t qualify for the final. It’s possible that he misjudged the speed of the race, and thought it would go out slower than it did.
POWUH: and Athenaeum Châtelaine with 2212 comments
I know there will be a relay race near the end of this series, and as I thought about it, I got an speculation idea. This series started with the 4 friends, and I think it’s going to end with the 4 friends.
No disrespect to Rei, but I think that compared to the other 4, he’s really more of a 5th wheel. Now don’t misunderstand, I think he will do great at the competition, but I have a feeling that he might be taken out of it later on(maybe through injury and/or sickness) and they will have Rin substitute.
What makes me think so? It’s obvious that before this is all over Rin and Haru will swim together again. Also, they interestingly mention in passing, that Rin’s strongest stroke is the butterfly. This makes me think that it’s possible that in this or a future competition, that Haruka, Makoto, Nagisa, and Rin will swim relay together, just as they once did as children, which will kind of bring everything full circle.
Well, what do you think? It’s just speculation on future events but it’s a thought.
POWUH: Meta Team and Spammy Tamer with 7115 comments
Oh, the finale for the show will be a relay, but I think Rin will be on the opposing team from Iwatobi, and facing off against Haru again. And because Rei is the weak link on the Iwatobi team (‘Fly is 3rd, after Back and Breast), Haru will have a deficit to make up against Rin (and he’ll beat him).
POWUH: Meta Resident and Metanorn's Hime-chan~ with 1758 comments
Haruka’s and Rin’s competition was so quick. There was no feeling of tension or suspense. It was so fast that I didn’t have the time to really get into it. And also, it may be just me, but the soundtrack used in that scene was a little too much. To me it seemed a little too dramatic for that sort of thing.
Then, Rin being a total asshole. I don’t really understand him being so obsessed with beating Haruka. Well okay, his overall motivation is understandable, but he’s practically gone bonkers because of it. Being such a bitch to someone who used to be your friend, just because he defeated you and is generally more talented is just…. that was almost obnoxious.
That boy…. it’s not even funny o-o
Kou-chan, way to go! Talk about killing two birds with one stone :3 Every time I see her fangirl over muscular boys
or rather their muscles aloneit makes me chuckle. And Sametsuka’s captain obviously has a crush on her too. Luckyy~POWUH: Meta Team and Spammy Tamer with 7115 comments
I thought the dubstep bgm wasn’t bad, but any time there is dubstep (which I’m not a huge fan of, actually), for me it needs a huge drop, which this didn’t have. If it’s all just *bzzzhhhzttt* and *waaaawaawawubwubwub* it’s like they forgot part of it.
POWUH: Meta Resident and Metanorn's Hime-chan~ with 1758 comments
No, not the dubstep one. When they dived, I heard the track which sounded like the one they used in the preview, when Rei nearly killed himself when he decided to swim alone at night.