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After upping her stealth tactics, but still being found out by Aharen, Oshiro decides she needs to confront Raido about how he feels towards her childhood friend.

We may have noticed that Oshiro wasn’t around while Raido and Aharen were hanging out in last week’s episode. Understandably, she likes to hide in the worst places for Aharen to find her, but it wasn’t like her to just disappear into thin air. That’s because Oshiro didn’t disappear. Instead, she’s training to fight against someone, which seems like an unusual way to cap off the first season of  Aharen-san .

What’s unusual about it is that the someone she’s confronting is Raido himself. The reason is that she believes that Raido has rejected Aharen, but in actuality, Aharen is still worried about showing her true feelings about Raido. Thankfully, the duel between Raido and Oshiro is far less bloody than we assumed. During their intense game of Reversi, Oshiro remembers her first encounter with Aharen in middle school, and Raido finally explains to her what happened at the campsite. When Aharen struggled to confess, Raido told her that he liked her. Aharen overheard the confession, giving her the courage to express her feelings towards Raido. She even said it loudly for her friends to hear.

I have never been this happy to see these characters finally moving to the next level of their relationship. It was bound to happen since the beginning of the series, and when that moment arrived, it didn’t feel too forced or rushed. Instead, it took its time to develop the buildup further while exploring Oshiro’s own friendship with Aharen. The result is a highly heartfelt segment that provides a surprising amount of levity in the intense Reversi match between Raido and Oshiro.

But, of course, it isn’t without its share of charismatic humor, mainly Tobaru’s reaction to Raido and Aharen’s confessions and Raido worrying about Aharen knowing his secrets. Plus, Oshiro’s distinct personality when she’s in her battle gear was pretty humorous, if not awkwardly frightening. This show has done exceptionally well in embracing its mixture of embarrassment comedy and heartwarming romance. So I’m glad the season finale managed to carry that consistency all the way to the end.

Overall, “This is a Duel, Huh?” is a splendid way to close off the first season of this charming and surprisingly hysterical series. The Reversi match and the confession scene were the main highlights of the finale. However, it was Raido’s speech about being there for Aharen at the end that’s worth shedding a tear or two. But, of course, like many other anime shows, it plants plenty of teases of what these characters will face during their second year, or in this case, a possible second season. Considering how surprised I was to enjoy a romantic comedy series like  Aharen-san , I really hope this does well so we can see these two lovebirds again.

A modern throwback to classic 80’s/90’s anime-schlock.