TV Review | Tsurune Season 2 (Episode 13: A Shot of Connection)

“After an intense penultimate episode, the season finale of Tsurune is a more relaxed one. It is a beautiful slice of life that focuses on the interactions between the characters.”

All good things must come to an end. And today, it is the end of the season for the second season of Tsurune.

THE FESTIVAL

Last week’s episode was an intense one with the Nationals. However, the season finale is a more relaxed one. Indeed, the characters of Kazemai and Kirisaki attend the festival at Masa’s shrine. It is a moment without rivalry where the characters can just have fun. Kyudo is also about making connections with other people. This is purely a slice of life episode. We spend time with each character as they enjoy the festival. So it is full of sweet scenes.

Moreover, it follows up on the relationships that have been explored this season. In fact, the interactions between Seiya and Shu have drastically changed since the beginning of the series. Earlier this season, the two shared a nice little scene indicating that Shu was making efforts. And in today’s episode, we see the continuation of that. We actually see friendly interactions between them. It feels good to see them like this.

Ryohei’s friendship with Shu’s sister has been another highlight of the season. And once again, they share a scene together. It is a brother-sister bond that is different from her bond with her actual brother. Ryohei provides a point of view outside of their rich buble, opening up their world.

Finally, a part of the Tsujimine team also makes an appearance. They prepare to recruit new people for the coming year. Even though, they are not part of the main story here, it still feels nice to see them. It also prepares the ground for what comes next whether it is a second film or a third season, or both.

THE CEREMONY

Furthermore, the season opened with the characters performing some kind of ritual and the final episode features this ceremony. I think it is a wonderful way to conclude the season. It goes full circle. Here, we get the full ceremony. We see Masa chanting the text, the characters preparing to shoot and then we see them shoot. This episode transports us to the event. We are here with them. It is actually an immersive experience.

This is not a simple ceremony for the Kazemai team. Indeed, shooting these arrows allow them to reflect on what happened recently. It is a brilliant sequence that gets inside the characters’ mind. This shows us how far they have gone. A lot has happened and each character has been able to learn something, to grow and to strengthen some bonds.

VERDICT

After an intense penultimate episode, the season finale of Tsurune is a more relaxed one. It is a beautiful slice of life that focuses on the interactions between the characters. Undoubtedly, this has been an exceptional season and I truly hope that this isn’t the end. There is definitely more story to be told with these characters.