DAMN YOU TOUSEI, DAMN YOU!!!

Wish I could do what Momo-kan does to fruit... Feeling the urge to crush something right now...

*Spoilers for Ookiku Furikabutte episode 22*

Though the match against Tousei seems to have gone forever, rather than feeling bored to tears watching, OoFuri has been doing an excellent job making every inning thus far extremely riveting and just plain giddifying! Nishiura as a new team comprising of only first-years have so far done a praiseworthy effort against last year's champion Tousei. And they're not just here to fluke it out against them - we've seen how the wonder-battery of Mihashi and Abe worked their magic with the full support of their team as whole ('support' seems to relegate the rest of them as sub-par to our two main guys, but it's only for a lack of a better word, they're all great players in their own right), and with their tactics set up to take down the powerhouse players of Tousei, there actually seemed like no doubt in Nishiura pulling off this victory... For the first few innings at least...

Which is why it's incredibly frustrating that when our underdogs pull are GIVING IT THEIR ALL with their skills, Tousei keeps coming back with flukes!! *Throws childish tantrum* Really, it's so infuriating that Tousei's now back in the lead in a split second that up to then really seemed to have favoured Nishiura. Guess as a baseball noob still I've yet to learn to read the atmosphere in the sport. In this scene itself I was more than convinced Abe has managed to save the play when he caught the ball at the home plate... Only ignorant old me never realized how physical this game could really be, so when the opposing player came sliding in and successfully pushing Abe off the plate - thus earning Tousei their fourth point- I was absolutely befuddled... and then enraged!!!

Thankfully the Nishiura boys are infinitely better at keeping their cool, so when history threatened to repeat itself almost immediately after... Oh god, I would've nearly passed out if it wasn't for the timely comic intervention of Mihashi:

*Ouch* Poor Mihashi's been dished a lot of physical damage this match... As if being mentally bashed up by Abe wasn't enough (All for his own good of course ;P)

OH SHI- Where's the ball? WHERE'S THE BALL???THERE it is! THERE IT IS!!!THROW THE BALL THROW THE DAMN BALL!!!

LMAO, though in actuality, Mihashi's slowness really elevated the tension in the scene, I was already in stitches even before Abe eventually caught the pitch - and blocked the slider from the home plate this time around. WOOT! Of course, Mihashi isn't going to be left off the hook by Abe... XD

Funnier still when Tajima has to step in to translate Mihashi's incoherent blubbering. Tajima's such an awesome character, if he wasn't playing baseball, he could join Mensa or solve crimes or something =P

Mihashi's such a priceless character... Though he's made much progress from his decidedly wimpy state at the start of the series, but watching him inevitably regress back into a blubbering pile of nerves when Abe has something to say about him is always the highlight of any episode of OoFuri for me.

You better believe it, Mihashi XD

I've slowed down in watching this series lately, mostly due to the fact that after the slew of subbed episodes coming out a while back, Central Anime seems to have stalled releasing the final two episodes. So I decided on taking my time with these few episodes building up to the finale in hopes that once I do get to episode 23, 24 and 25 (and what's this I hear about a 26th episode???) will be subbed and ready to watch... Well, it hasn't happened yet, so we'll see if I'll eventually succumb to the urge of baffling myself to no end watching the raws and reading the episode summaries at scrumptious =P

Till then, NISHIURA GANBARE!!! (And GIVE IT ALL YOU'VE GOT!!!)