Birdie Wing Episode 24: Date With Destiny

They’re almost there. Just a little longer before their destined battle all to themselves but as we saw near the end there were a few more obstacles to overcome. One greater than the other.

We saw Juha had an elite team to analyze every nook and cranny of the battlefield and potentially strong opponents. Juha herself meanwhile was more of a spiritual warrior as we’d soon see. As for her caddy she’s just another chick who initially underestimated our heroines despite their power.

On one hand I’m sad Juha’s the “final boss” for obvious reasons. On the other hand every time she’s on screen I can’t take my eyes off her. The wait has been worth it. Thank you Birdie Wing for blessing cultured people with many diverse maidens. If only the show were more popular with fan artists.

Lastly before we get to the main attraction, as if to rub salt on her wound, the writers had Reika, the player pecked as the best female golfer in Japan, not even make it past the tournament qualifiers. She’s scarred that badly by her loss to Aoi and Amane.

Like traditional shonen anime this show recycles special move animations so there’s no issue reusing this screen grab.

On to what we’re really here for. Juha was on top on Day 1 but Aoi and Eve quickly caught up with Aoi taking a strong lead past Day 2 as Eve kept up in 3rd. On Night 2 our heroine was annoyed Juha got in the way of their destined battle tuning it into an unwanted Triple Threat Match. Ichina’s like “How could you not know anything about one of the best female golfers in the world?” By now we know Eve only cared about things/people that/who interested her. On Day 3 Eve was ready to step up her game and showed Aoi her mastery of the Rainbow Burst.

Not to be outdone by her soulmate Aoi showed she too learned a new trick, the Shining 48. Of course Aoi too created her own Ultimate Move based on her dad’s technique. Despite the final boss lurking nearby our heroines only had eyes for each other. We wouldn’t have it any other way. Even Juha envied their “rivalry”. Yes, raivarus. That’s all they are…

Naturally being the final boss one would expect Juha to not stay behind a dominant Aoi for long. Coach Papa wondered why the champ wasn’t going all out against Aoi. It was made clear when our heroine got dizzy again. Juha could sense something was off about Aoi. She even made an Icarus and the sun metaphor complete with a melting Aoi statue. Vintage Birdie Wing yo.

To add to the drama besides her promise to Eve Aoi’s other goal was to show everyone how awesome golf was through her passion. Nothing wrong with that…except her saying this while barely conscious made her come off like golf martyr, which I assume was the intention.

Eve refused to be left behind. Ichina did her part yet again and would not let this incredible opportunity go to waste. Her dream to lead her golfer to a world championship tournament had come true so to waste it would have been a crime against her very being. Luckily she again showed her awesomeness and couldn’t handle the rare heartfelt praise from Eve.

We’ve known for a long time the destined battle was very important to our heroines but like a slow burn romance the long wait intensified their need to play one on one. It had to be Aoi. It had to be Eve. The symbolism was at an all time high this episode. Only the most adamant of deniers couldn’t see what’s right in front of all our eyes, especially from Eve’s view. Aoi’s feelings meanwhile grew even stronger thanks to the long wait thing I mentioned. However, as Eve gazed passionately at Aoi’s divine golf…

I do believe this is the first time Eve has shown strong feelings for someone beyond her fam. As Aoi swore to keep their promise she prayed to GOD to give her enough strength to finish the game…before collapsing again.

Of the three shows I hoped would “do the right thing” this season I admit Birdie Wing was the one I thought had the least chance of doing it. The symbolism and delightful moments in the 1st half up to the early 2nd half have been lovely, yes, but if I read articles about the writers forced to hold back an openly gay conclusion because the higher-ups stopped them I will be annoyed. You can only get away with that excuse for so long before I go “THEN DON’T DO IT AT AND SAVE US A LOT OF TIME!” They’re so close and I’m still holding out hope till the very end because that’s what I do. Not in the mood for some of the inevitable pessimism in the comments.

Great stuff as always. Almost there yo. Almost there.

G-View next time.